Italians will be tightening their belts and spending less for presents this Christmas, at the end of a year in which many families were forced to make cuts, according to a report from the Confesercenti retails association.
According to the study, Italians will be using 1.8% less of their Christmas bonuses to buy presents which will contribute to an expected 5% drop in spending for gifts.
Over the past year, a Confesercenti poll found, 67% of Italians were forced to make spending cutbacks compared to 61% last year.
Almost 50% of Italians spent less on new clothes and spending was down also for vacations, the home and even food.
Looking at how Italians will be using their bonus for buying gifts, the report predicted an eight percentage point drop for clothing, a six point decline for travel, three for cars and motorbikes, two for furniture and appliances and a two percentage point drop for toys.
The Confesercenti poll also found that 56% of Italians expected this Christmas would be the same as last year, while 23% said it would be better and 19% worse.
Among people living on pensions, 45% said they would try to save their Christmas bonus, while 15% said they would use it on gifts and 20% on other acquisitions, while the rest said their bonus would go to pay bills, loans and taxes.
In regards to buying gifts, the Confesercenti study found that Italians were ready to spend less on themselves in order to buy presents for family and friends.
A total of 35% of Italians said they would spend less on presents while 18% were ready to spend more this year.
Technological objects remained the most popular gift again this year, especially cellphones, DVD recorders and computers.
As to where Italians will buy their gifts, 50% said they would go to big department stores and shopping malls, 26% to small shops and 15% to open-air markets.
When asked what they would do if money were not an object, 24% of Italians said they would buy a house by the sea, a lesser percentage would buy a house in the mountains while other Italians said they would take a cruise, even one around the world.
