1ST LEAD German consumer confidence slips amid global worries By Andrew McCathie, dpa

Berlin (dpa) - German consumer confidence is set to slide next month, as global economic and political tensions cast a shadow over the mood among households in Europe‘s biggest economy, a survey released on Friday showed.Consumer confidence will slip to 9.9 next month after holding at 10.1 in both July and August, the Nuremberg-based GfK research group said as it released it forward-looking index.The sense of relief that the long-running Greek crisis has been resolved - at least for the time-being - has been by offset by a slowdown in China and conflict in the Middle East, the GfK said."The economic optimism of German consumers has slowed somewhat," said GfK analyst Rolf Buerkl, pointing to international risks as having unsettled the nation‘s consumers.Analysts surveyed by dpa-AFX had expected the forward-looking index to hold steady at 10.1 for the third consecutive month in September.Based on a survey of about 2,000 households, the GfK index hit 10.2 in June - its highest reading since October 2001.The release of the GfK survey comes ahead of the publication on Monday of Germany‘s closely watched Ifo business confidence indicator, which analysts expect will show executives also growing concerned about the prospects for world economic growth.Analysts predict the Munich-based Ifo institute will say its business confidence indicator slipped from 108 points in July to 107.5 this month.The fall in consumer confidence came in the wake of a drop in the indicator‘s gauge measuring economic and income expectations. Willingness to buy among German households also declined for the third month in a row.But the GfK said: "Despite the decline, it cannot be said that the economic motor will stutter or even stall."As before, the indicator level is high, suggesting that private consumption can fulfil its ascribed role as an important pillar of economic development this year," it said.The GfK went on to say that solid employment, rising incomes and low inflation should help to stabilize the consumer climate in the coming months.