- Market research group GfK
Consumer morale in Europe's largest economy stalled in April, amid fears of a possible resurgence of the Eurozone crisis, market research group GfK said Wednesday. A gauge of consumer confidence held steady at 5.9 going into April, meeting analysts' expectations. A report also showed that consumers became slightly less willing to splash out on goods, and were also a bit more downbeat about their earnings in the future. Political instability in Italy and Cyprus also weighed on German consumers' mood. Other recent confidence indicators like the Ifo business climate index and the ZEW investor confidence index also remained unchanged amid concerns that the long-running sovereign debt crisis could flare up again.
"However, current events in Cyprus may damage consumer trust and become a burden on the consumer climate," GfK said but nonetheless confirmed its prediction that private consumption would grow by 1% this year.
"But that is not having a lasting effect on consumer sentiment in Germany," it said. "Economic expectations have risen, which suggests that consumers are fairly relaxed with regard to the economy," it said.
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