Greek crisis hits German consumer sentiment: Think-tank

August from 5,5 points in July, the GfK research institute said yesterday.
That marks the lowest level since November, when the indicator stood at 5,2 points, GfK said.

The institute had initially estimated the July level as 5,7 points, following 5,6 points in June, which means that consumer sentiment did not edge higher this month as initially predicted for Europe’s biggest economy.
“The ongoing discussions about the best way to resolve Greece’s debt crisis and the associated potential dangers for the single European currency are unsettling German consumers, and economic and income expectations have weakened accordingly,” a GfK statement said.

GfK polled around 2 000 consumers, many of whom responded before eurozone leaders and private creditors agreed to a new rescue plan for Greece.
A breakdown of the survey showed that consumers’ income expectations suffered the sharpest fall, wiping out a strong gain seen the previous month.

GfK underscored “the threat of a further increase in energy prices, which would also have a negative impact on the spending power of private households”.
It added, however, that “Germans still expect that the economy will continue to record growth, even if this is not quite as strong as previously”.
In its latest check of the German business climate, the Ifo economic research institute said that sentiment had also dropped, owing in large part to cloudier outlooks in the manufacturing and retail sectors. – AFP.