Wholesaling (Germany):
Dampened expectations

In wholesaling the judgments of the present business situation were less positive than in June. This was the result of unfavourable developments in food and beverages whereas in consumer durables and nondurables there was an improvement. The favourable business situation in the industrial B2B sector remained unchanged. The six-month outlook worsened in all sectors. Survey participants again assessed their inventory levels as too high but still intend to place more orders than at the same time of the previous year. As in previous months, a similar share of survey participants expect to be able to raise prices. In eastern German wholesaling the favourable responses regarding the business situation now hold the balance clearly less strongly than in June as a result of higher inventory pressure. Confidence in the business outlook has weakened but firms are still planning to increase orders in the coming months. The increase in prices is expected to continue at a stepped-up pace.