German shopper mood at 5-year low

Rising fuel bills are hitting spending

German consumer confidence has fallen to its lowest level in more than five years as rising prices and a lacklustre economy concerns shoppers.

The consumer confidence index by market research firm GfK fell to 2.1 in its forward-looking view of August, down from 3.6 for July.

Economists said the fall was more than forecast and was bad news for Germany's economy as exports were also slowing.

Inflation in Germany is at its highest level since 1993.

The economy also is expected to have slowed in the second quarter.

"While they are waiting for their next energy bills ...consumers will no doubt be putting the brakes on their purchasing in the belief that in the future, a large proportion of their household budget will be going toward energy costs," the report said.

The fall in consumer confidence came despite record employment and increases in wages in Germany.

"The positive momentum generated by the job market and the beneficial wage and salary increases compared with last year are consequently being demolished by inflation," GfK said.