Retailing: Current Business Situation Turns Less Favourable

The business climate indicator for retailing fell for the third month in succession in August. This was due to far less positive assessments of the current business situation. Despite the historically good situation in the employment market and marked increases in wages, consumers’ propensity to spend waned slightly. Business expectations, by contrast, were less negative. Although pressure due to high inventories fell slightly, retailers were less keen to place orders than last month. Moreover, they were also less keen to recruit additional staff. On balance, more participants expect to increase their sales prices in the months ahead.