According to the statistics of the German Retail Federation, the retail sales in the Christmas shopping season this year are about 120 billion euros. Although the nominal growth rate is 5.4%, the actual growth rate excluding inflation is negative 4%. This will be the worst Christmas shopping season since 2007, and online sales will actually fall into negative growth. According to a survey of about 400 retailers, two-thirds of them said that the customer flow was lower than last year. Only one fifth of businesses are satisfied with the current performance of the Christmas shopping season. "Consumers are very cautious, because the situation is not clear because of the soaring energy prices," said Gart, director general of the German Retail Federation Britain also suffered strong headwinds. A survey of 3000 people living in the UK by Deloitte found that about 60% of respondents would reduce their Christmas spending, and 40% said they would buy cheap brands when shopping for Christmas gifts. Inflation in European countries is still hovering at a high level. The euro area consumer price index rose 10% in November. Among the 19 countries in the euro area, 11 countries have double-digit inflation rates. For example, Germany's inflation rate in November was as high as 11.3%. Britain's inflation rate also reached 11.1% in October, a 41 year high. According to the measurement results of the Bruegel Institute, EU member states have allocated 600 billion euros since September 2021 to help households and enterprises cope with inflation. Under the huge financial stimulus, the situation of the Christmas shopping season is still sluggish, reflecting the fact that the European economy is seriously cooling. The euro area may usher in two consecutive quarters of negative economic growth in the first quarter of 2023, which will also increase people's concern about the imminent recession of the euro area economy. (Liu Xinshe)