21. februar 2012, 12:58 – opdateret 21. februar 2012, 13:05

Danish consumers have become slightly more optimistic over the past month, but pessimism still reigns.

Statistics Denmark’s consumer demand index has risen from minus 7 in January to minus 4.8 now, a step in the right direction and significantly better than pre-Christmas when the index sank to minus 10. People have also generally become more positive about their own financial situation, pushing the index up to 8.6, compared to the dark days of last Autumn when it was hovering around 1.6.

However, a majority of consumers believe they are worse off today than they were one year ago, a result of the imposition of new duties, higher petrol prices, and the ever-increasing cost of imported goods according to analysts.

This is also reflected in the unwillingness to purchase high-ticket items. For the seventh month in a row, consumers expect that unemployment will continue to rise.