Romanians will spend 13 percent more money on the winter holidays this year, but this increase does not necessarily reflect higher consumption, but rather covers inflation, according to a study conducted by “Reveal Marketing Research“, Agerpres reported for BTA.
“Amid rising prices and the cost of living over the past year, the average amount that Romanians estimate they will spend on the holidays has increased by 13 percent compared to the end of last year – from 1,188 to 1,340 Romanian lei“, the survey says.
Romanians estimate that this year's holiday budget will be similar (53 percent) or lower (34 percent) than last year's. Women, unlike men, are more cautious, talking about a smaller budget than last year (37 percent compared to 31 percent for men). Only 12 percent say that their budget will be higher, with significantly more such respondents in the 44-55 age group (25 percent).
In terms of spending distribution, 33 percent of the budget allocated for the holidays will be spent on food and drinks, 25 percent on gifts, and 10 percent on decorations and festive atmosphere. In addition, 13 percent of this year's budget is set aside for unforeseen expenses.
“Similar to last year's winter holidays, more than half of Romanians (61 percent) say they will reduce spending on decorations and festive atmosphere, while 47 percent intend to allocate a smaller budget for gifts and 36 percent will reduce the amount spent on food and drinks,“ the survey shows.
The most desired Christmas gifts this year are cosmetics (23 percent), clothes (20 percent) and household goods (14 percent).
Gift exchange is an important Christmas tradition and most Romanians (31 percent) are not very picky, stating that it does not matter what gifts they receive. Cosmetics are the most popular gifts (23 percent), especially among young people aged 18 – 34 years (37 percent), while clothes (20 percent) and home gifts (14 percent) complete the list of favorite gifts.
The survey was conducted online from December 6 to 12, 2024, among a representative sample of people over the age of 18 among Internet users in cities and villages. The sample size is 1,017 people, and the maximum statistical error is +/-3.1 percent at a confidence level of 95 percent.