Spending Seen Weak in Christmas Season
By Jane Han
Staff Reporter
For most, Christmas is a time of spending money. But a recent survey has shown that local shoppers squeezed by tight budgets will be doing a little less of that, while spending more time with their family this holiday season.
A poll of 2,480 men and women done by hypermarket chain Homeplus showed Sunday that four out of 10 respondents are planning to spend just 30,000 won or less per gift, slightly down from last year.
Christmas Day eat-out diners are expected to decline five percent, while the number of those who plan to shop dropped three percent. And respondents who said they'd send out greetings cards also dipped three percent, demonstrating that consumers are refraining from traditional cost-requiring activities.
However, those planning to host dinners at home with family and friends, instead of going out to enjoy the nightlife, went up six percent from last year.
``The local idea of Christmas may be seeing a moderate shift, as more people prefer and consider time spent at home with family as more valuable than before,'' said a company spokesman, adding that shopping trends are also noteworthy.
For many consumers, the 30,000-won figure holds a special meaning, she said, explaining that anything above that amount is considered ``expensive'' by the majority of shoppers.
Among those who plan on giving gifts to their parents and in-laws, 64 percent said they would budget between 30,000 won to 100,000 won.
Toys were singled out as the top gift option for kids, while fashion wear and health supplements were selected as the most popular gifts for spouses and parents, respectively.
``Taking into account consumers' 30,000 won mental budget, we plan to offer a wide variety of goods around that price range,'' he said.