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Consumer climate is on the decline: consumers are worried about their jobs!
The GfK consumer climate index will fall for the third time in August 2025, influenced by job concerns and purchased declines.
Consumer climate is on the decline: consumers are worried about their jobs!
In August 2025, the consumer climate index in Germany shows a noticeable deterioration, which can be observed for the third time in a row. This emerges from the latest survey by the market research institute GfK and the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions (NIM). The results signal a further decline in consumer sentiment and are reflected in consumers' declining income and economic expectations. Deutschlandfunk reports that worries about their own jobs in particular contributed significantly to this decline. Fear of possible job loss is causing consumers to be more cautious when making major purchases.
The GfK consumer climate survey has been carried out regularly since 1974 and has been carried out monthly since 1980. This instrument is considered an important indicator of consumer behavior in Germany. The current survey is based on around 2,000 consumer interviews that were carried out on behalf of the EU Commission. Since October 2023, these evaluations have been carried out in collaboration with the NIM to ensure a more precise analysis and development of the consumer climate study. The aim of this complex methodology is to obtain well-founded insights into the consumer mood of Germans. NIM adds that consumers are showing a slight decline in their tendency to buy and save in the current month.
Decline in expectations
Current data suggests that the consumer climate indicator is forecasting a decline of 1.9 points to -23.6 points for September 2025. This comes after a revision to -21.7 points in the previous month. This negative development is perceived as alarming and indicates ongoing uncertainty in the overall economic situation. According to Rolf Bürkl from NIM, consumers' hopes for an early recovery in terms of their income prospects are cautious. The resulting fears and precautionary measures also have a statistical impact on the general propensity to consume in society.
In the ongoing economic uncertainty, the outlook for the future remains skeptical. The next release of these data series is scheduled for September 25, 2025, in hopes of a possible turnaround in consumer sentiment.