German consumer sentiment has been hit by the Greek debt crisis, and a widely-watched index fell to an expected 5.4 points for August from 5.5 points in July, the GfK research institute said today.
That marks the lowest level since November, when the indicator stood at 5.2 points, GfK said.
'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 in July,' a GfK statement said.
The instituted had polled around 2,000 consumers, many of whom were surveyed before euro zone leaders and private creditors agreed last Thursday to a new rescue plan for Greece.
In its latest check of the German business climate meanwhile, the Ifo economic research institute said on Friday that sentiment had also dropped, owing in large part to cloudier outlooks in the manufacturing and retail sectors.
A breakdown of the survey showed that consumers' income expectations suffered the sharpest fall, wiping out a strong gain seen the previous month.
GfK emphasised '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.'
