Average UK Adult to spend £280 on Christmas gifts this year- PwC

The average UK adult expects to spend around £280 on Christmas gifts this year according to a survey conducted for PwC. The results also show that, whilst Christmas remains a priority for consumers, around 4% expect to spend nothing on gifts.

Of those not intending to spend anything on Christmas gifts this year, the majority (64%), do not celebrate Christmas (64%), while 23% say they have no one to give gifts to, with 15% saying they cannot afford to spend anything on Christmas gifts this year.

And whilst this year has seen its  fair share of headlines and volatility, a quarter (25%) of those surveyed say they expect the effects of the UK’s vote to leave the European Union to impact how much they spend this Christmas. However, the majority (67%) don’t expect the EU referendum to affect their Christmas spending plans.

Commenting on the survey results, Madeleine Thomson, retail and consumer lead at PwC said:

“We’ve seen UK consumers respond robustly to this year’s political uncertainty and sterling weakness, as evidenced by the post-referendum retail sales figures. Our survey results underline this resilience, with 67% of UK consumers expecting the results of the referendum to have no impact on their Christmas spending and the average adult expecting to spend around £280 on Christmas gifts this year.

“The survey, like our Black Friday and Cyber Monday research, also shows that consumers are adapting their shopping habits, by purchasing more online. Over half (53%) of participants say they would make their purchases online this Christmas, compared to 43% who plan to shop in-store.

“The impact of Black Friday and Cyber Monday on Christmas spending has also been intriguing. Despite so many saying the amount they spend has nothing to do with retailers (48%), three fifths (60%) hesitate to purchase before Christmas because of pre-Christmas price reductions/discounts, with 16% hesitating on most of their Christmas purchases.”

The survey results also show that over a quarter (28%) of respondents would spend more if prices were reduced earlier, while 13% would spend more if deals were offered earlier.

Ends.

Notes to Editor:

PwC forecasts that UK growth will slow to around 1.2% in 2017, largely due to the drag on investment from increased political and economic uncertainty following the Brexit vote. However, PwC doesn’t expect the UK to suffer recession next year. It does, however, expect inflation to rise to around 2.7% by the end of 2017 as the effects of a weaker pound feed through to consumers, squeezing real spending power.

About the Survey:

This report is based on the results of an online survey of 2,000 consumers across the United Kingdom aged 18 and over.

The survey was conducted by Opinium in November 2016 and the results have been weighed to form a nationally representative criteria.  

For more information please contact Stephen Young on: [email protected]/07789808745