Retailing: business situation nearly satisfactory

The business climate in retailing brightened somewhat in May. Only a small number of firms were critical of their current business situation. For the coming months fewer companies than in April expect a worsening of their business, however, the sceptical responses clearly remain in the majority. Inventory pres-sure has decreased, and the restrictive order policies are set to be loosened slightly. The firms were forced to make price concessions in the past month and expect to make further concessions in future. Fewer firms than in April indicated plans to reduce staff levels.