Posted on 08/06/2012 7:39:41 PM PDT by TigerLikesRooster
European Consumers Tighten Their Belts
By Sam Schechner
Austerity isn’t just for governments anymore.
As countries across Europe slash their budgets to tackle the sovereign-debt crisis, individual Europeans are reining in spending, too. They are trading down to cheaper groceries, buying fewer big-ticket items, and searching more for bargains online.
“Suddenly, we’re becoming more cautious, more restrained,” said Rose-Marie Hall, 38, whose family of four east of Paris is holding off on replacing its 11-year-old car and has avoided their usual trips to nearby Disneyland Paris this year. “When you hear there are people who have lost their jobs, and find themselves with nothing, you say, ‘That could happen to me.’” Ms. Hall isn’t alone. As the number of unemployed in the euro zone reaches record levels and recession bites across much of the region, consumers are becoming increasingly thrifty.
The result is a change in consumer habits that could have an enduring impact on everything from economic growth to the corporate bottom line, with slower consumer spending rippling through companies already reeling from the slowdown.
(Excerpt) Read more at stream.wsj.com ...
P!
If just the marginal spending is reduced growth halts and will reverse.
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