Because of crises and inflation, consumers held on to their money for a long time. Now the prospect of rising wages is boosting the buying mood again – at least a little.
The trend is pointing slightly upwards: According to the latest study on the consumer climate in the country, Germans’ purchasing mood is still poor, but it is recovering slightly.
“Income expectations are increasing noticeably, economic expectations and the propensity to buy are increasing moderately,” said the Nuremberg institutes GfK and NIM as a result of their study on the consumer climate in April. The consumer climate improved for the third time in a row to a two-year high of minus 24.2 points. Before the corona pandemic, the indicator was comparatively stable at around plus ten points.
The researchers found that consumption is currently being held back by a continued very high propensity to save. “The stronger increase in consumer sentiment compared to the previous two months is primarily due to the noticeable increase in income expectations,” said NIM consumer expert Rolf Bürkl. “From our analyses, we know that income expectations are primarily based on real income development. And here the signals are definitely positive.”
“Private households record income increases”
He attributes this to increases in consumer wages and salaries, which coincide with a declining inflation rate. Purchasing power will therefore increase again. “Private households are currently recording significant real income increases, as both collectively agreed wages and salaries as well as statutory retirement benefits have risen significantly and will continue to rise in the coming months.”
However, the mood among consumers is currently even worse than the actual situation. “The current bad mood lies like a veil over the facts,” said Bürkl. There is great uncertainty in view of the many national and international crises. As a result, there was largely no strong stimulus for domestic demand.
Source: Stern
