German Retail Sales Fall Again

Although signs are pointing to a recovery for the stumbling German economy, retails sales fell for the second month in three in July. Sales dropped 1.6 percent in the month, after gaining 1.2 percent in June, according to the Federal Statistics Office. While German consumers can look forward to more money in their wallets when the government cuts taxes next year by €22 billion ($24 billion), they still are shy about spending. Sales are down 2.2 percent from a year ago. Still, consumer and investor confidence are rising and business leaders are more confident about the future of the economy than they have been in the past 14 months. However, analysts say it will take a while before the economy gets back on its feet.