German consumer confidence slumps as energy costs bite

FRANKFURT, Sept 25 (Reuters) - German consumer sentiment weakened more sharply than expected heading into October, as rising energy prices soured households' income outlook, a survey showed on Friday.

The consumer sentiment index, published by the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions and the GfK market research institute, fell to -30.6 points heading into October from a revised -26.8 in September, missing the -27.4 average estimate in a Reuters poll of analysts.

"The majority of households expect that high energy prices will diminish their purchasing power," said Rolf Buerkl, head of consumer climate at NIM.

The income expectations sub-index slumped 16.7 points to -15.0, its lowest level since April 2026, shortly before a fuel discount was introduced. 

"Consequently, they are more sceptical about income prospects for the next 12 months," he added.

Households' willingness to save jumped 6 points to 21.5, its highest level since the 2008 financial crisis, as consumers responded to elevated energy costs, the survey found. 

NIM said the rise was especially pronounced among wealthier households.

The willingness to buy edged down 1 point to -10.8, only slightly above the year-earlier level of -11.6, and has hovered around that mark for more than three years.

Economic expectations, by contrast, rose half a point to -3.4, a fifth consecutive increase, as Germany's economy performed better than expected in the first half of 2026.

  OCT 2026 SEP 2026 OCT 2025

Consumer climate -30.6 -26.8 -22.5

Components SEP 2026 AUG 2026 SEP 2025

Economic -3.4 -3.9 -1.4

expectations

Income expectations -15.0 1.7 15.1

Willingness to buy -10.8 -9.8 -11.6

Willingness to save 21.5 15.5 16.1

Price expectations -0.4 -0.2 -6.3

The survey was conducted September 3-14, based on around 2,000 consumer interviews.

The consumer sentiment index is designed to forecast consumer behaviour in the following month.

A one-point change in the indicator corresponds to a year-on-year change of 0.1% in private consumption.

A reading above zero indicates year-on-year growth in private consumption. A value below zero indicates a drop.

(Reporting by Ludwig Burger, editing by Thomas Seythal)