Source page: McKinsey & Company
Commentary
Shifting concerns for European consumers
Consumer | Retail | Europe
July 13, 2022 – Anxieties have started to shift away from the pandemic—and toward new concerns—for European consumers. According to our latest European Consumer Pulse Survey, 44 percent of respondents cite rising prices as a top concern, while almost a quarter said the invasion of Ukraine. COVID-19 now ranks third in the list of major worries.
To read the article, see “How inflation and the conflict in Ukraine are impacting European consumers,” May 26, 2022.
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Visual form
Bubble matrix chart.
Layout / body structure
The chart is arranged as a matrix with concern categories in rows and countries or regional aggregates in columns. Each cell is a circle sized by the response share, so the eye can move across a row to compare countries and then down the matrix to see how the concern hierarchy changes.
What is being compared
The chart compares top consumer concerns across Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, and the Europe 5 aggregate. It contrasts rising prices and the invasion of Ukraine with older concerns such as COVID-19, unemployment, and extreme weather events.
Measurement system
Each bubble represents the percentage of respondents naming that issue as a top concern, and many of the final bubbles carry their numeric values inside the circles. Bubble size is therefore the main measurement device, with the matrix layout providing the country-by-concern cross section.
Visible structure inside the graphic
The largest bubbles sit in the top row for rising prices across every country, and the second row for the invasion of Ukraine forms the next-largest band. The COVID-19, unemployment, and extreme-weather rows shrink sharply by comparison, which makes the shift in consumer anxiety visible without needing a separate legend.
Main takeaway from the visual
The matrix shows that European consumer concern has decisively moved away from the pandemic and toward inflation and geopolitics. Rising prices dominate every country column, and the invasion of Ukraine is the clear number-two issue, leaving COVID-19 much smaller by comparison.
Key standout values or extremes
Rising prices reach 40 percent in Germany, 44 percent in France, 60 percent in the United Kingdom, 32 percent in Italy, 47 percent in Spain, and 44 percent across Europe 5. The invasion of Ukraine comes next at 34 percent in Germany, 18 percent in France, 15 percent in the United Kingdom, 32 percent in Italy, 21 percent in Spain, and 24 percent for Europe 5, while COVID-19 drops into much smaller single-digit or low-teen bubbles.
Controls / sequence, when applicable
This is a static chart image with no in-chart controls to operate.
Companion media, when applicable
There is no separate companion audio or video; the chart image is the full visual on this page.