The GfK research group said its forward-looking consumer climate index for February stood at 3.2 points -- down from 3.4 in January, a figure that was revised upward from an initial reading of 3.3.
Germany’s economy, Europe’s biggest, contracted by 5 percent last year, its worst performance since World War II. It has returned to modest growth, and is expected to expand by about 1.5 percent this year. GfK said that consumers’ economic expectations were stable this month, and their income expectations slipped -- although both were far above the levels of a year ago. “In particular, the threat of a rise in unemployment and the slight weakening in German economic recovery are playing a significant role” in cooling consumer confidence, the group said. “In terms of consumption, 2010 is therefore likely to be a more difficult year than 2009.” The survey found a rise this month in consumers’ propensity to buy, with a sub index measuring that gaining 4.2 points this month to 25.4.
“Evidently, many consumers are currently being influenced by the multitude of discounts on offer in large swathes of the retail industry,” ranging from food to furniture, GfK said.
Other indicators have showed a mixed picture recently. Business confidence has been rising for months, but a more volatile index of investor confidence has been falling amid expectations that the economic recovery will only be slow. GfK’s monthly survey is based on around 2,000 consumer interviews.
