German consumer morale darkens heading into January

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Black Friday and Christmas - it's all about the consumer at this time of year.

But the mood among German shoppers deteriorated unexpectedly heading towards January, suggesting household spending in Europe's largest economy could weaken at the beginning of next year.

The consumer sentiment indicator, published by the GfK institute and based on a survey of around 2,000 Germans, edged down to 9.6 from 9.7 in December.

A Reuters poll had predicted an increase to 9.8.

Household spending has turned into a steady and reliable driver of growth in Germany - helped by record-high employment, pay hikes and historically low borrowing costs.

But GfK said consumers were more pessimistic about the overall growth outlook, and had scaled back their personal income expectations.

Germany's main car industry body said earlier this month it expects global car sales to fall by 5% this year, and it warned of more job cuts in 2020 as a result.

Germany has been relying on consumer spending to provide a buffer against global trade-related problems.

The German economy overall is expected to pick up steam in the fourth quarter, growing 0.2 percent.

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