• Prior -8.1; revised to -8.5

German consumer morale dips further to its lowest since February 2021, as rising prices and inflation fears are key factors weighing on sentiment - not helped by the Russia-Ukraine war. GfK notes that:

“In February hopes were still high that consumer sentiment would recover significantly with the foreseeable easing of pandemic-related restrictions. However, the start of the war in Ukraine caused these hopes to vanish into thin air. Rising uncertainty and sanctions against Russia have caused energy prices in particular to skyrocket, putting a noticeable strain on general consumer sentiment."

In particular, income expectations slid to -22.1 which is the lowest since January 2009 as consumers are seeing their purchasing power melt away.