The public's overall mood significantly worsened in August.
Seems like the excessive joy brought about by Germany's participation in the football European Championship has now dwindled, as shared by NIM consumer expert Rolf Bürkl. Even a minor surge in the supposed savings habit by 2.7 points has added to the consumer's general unease.
Rising job losses, more bankrupt companies, and impending job cuts have sparked increased anxiety among the workforce, as per survey findings. Thus, the anticipation for a long-term, stable economic recovery needs to be "put on hold," stated Bürkl.
The survey revealed that German households were less optimistic about their financial situation over the next twelve months compared to the previous one. The income expectations index plummeted by 16.2 points to a modest 3.5 points. The last time such a significant drop was observed within a month was two years ago, as per NIM and GfK.
This pessimism also reflected in the consumption tendency. "Nevertheless, the damage isn't severe at 2.5 points," explained the pollsters. The indicator maintained a negative value of -10.6%. Despite this, there's still a growth of over 6 points compared to the same period last year.
Economic expectations witnessed a volatile trend in August, following the significant surge of 7.3 points in July, only to plummet by 7.8 points, now settling at 2.0 points.
GfK and NIM regularly interview around 2,000 consumers each month for their surveys. For the current study, interviews were conducted between August 1 and 12. The consumer climate encompasses all personal consumer spending, including retail, services, travel, rent, and healthcare services.
The consumer climate survey conducted between August 1 and 12 revealed a decline in economic expectations, with a drop of 7.8 points in August after a significant surge in July. The pessimism about the financial situation over the next twelve months is not limited to the current month, as it was also observed two years ago.
