Germany: Consumer confidence expected to be stable in May
Consumer confidence in Germany is expected to remain at April’s 10.4 in May, according to the GfK Group Consumer Climate Index. Meanwhile, data for April reveals a diverging trend in the underlying components of consumer confidence.
Economics expectations took another hit in April, with the sub index nearly halving from the prior month. This was driven by lingering headwinds stemming from softer global economic growth, Brexit uncertainty and global trade tensions. Despite this, both income expectations and propensity to buy rose further in April. Robust domestic fundamentals are chiefly driving optimism in these two components. The ongoing tightness in the German labor market pushes salaries and pension payments up. Subsequently, propensity to buy continued to increase.