The average expenditure by Canarians on recent Christmas purchases was 688 euros per person, an increase of 88% compared to the previous year and 24% more than in the last Christmas without COVID-19, according to the latest seasonal edition of The Cetelem Observatory published this Friday.
Thus, the percentage of Canarians who spent more than the previous year on Christmas shopping has suffered a sharp increase of 8 percentage points compared to 2020, from 16% to 28%.
On the other hand, 42% declare having made the same expenditure as in previous Christmases, which represents an increase of 16 percentage points, and another 34% of Canarians have invested less money than in 2020 (compared to 58% who declared it the previous year).
The study points out that "the last weeks of December seem to have increased the interest in going shopping", given that the declared intention to spend was 508 euros while the actual expenditure was "much higher", at those 688 euros.
Impact of COVID-19
The Cetelem survey, a commercial brand of BNP Paribas Personal Finance, indicates that "the pandemic has been a determining factor in Christmas spending" as almost 6 out of 10 respondents acknowledge having spent less on it. However, this figure is reduced by almost 25 percentage points compared to what they stated in 2020 (83%).
The observatory also takes into account spending on gifts and that destined for family gatherings. Most of the respondents declare having spent less than last year in both cases, although it should be noted that in the case of purchases for Christmas shopping the percentage is somewhat higher. The most purchased products this past Christmas have been footwear and accessories (55.3%), toys (44.7%), fashion (42.1%).
The data from The Cetelem Observatory, which recently celebrated its twentieth anniversary, have been obtained from an online survey conducted by the company Invesmarket to 1,000 people over 18 years of age. It issues four annual reports -Motor, European Consumption, Spanish Consumption and e-Commerce-, monthly editions, and specific and seasonal thematic studies.
