Retailers ready for Christmas spending spree

 

Christmas, present, shopping, giftRetailers are expecting the next fortnight of Christmas spending to be the biggest of the year as most Australians cram their Christmas preparations into the final weeks, according to weekly Christmas spending projections released by the Australian National Retailers’ Association (ANRA).

Anna McPhee, CEO of ANRA, said around $7.6 billion is expected to be spent nationally this week with the average family anticipated to spend about $965 on Christmas preparations.

A large amount of retail activity will take place at bricks and mortar stores, cafes, and restaurants with $6.5 billion likely to be spent.

Online shopping activity will also heighten in the week ahead with sales projected to reach more than $1 billion.

“We anticipate consumers will start to look to Australian retailers to finalise their Christmas preparations as the likelihood of delivery of international online purchases diminishes,” McPhee said.

According to ANRA’s survey of Christmas shoppers more than 62 per cent of Australians expect to complete all of their Christmas preparations with a week to spare, so they’ll be out in force over the next two weeks.

“The most sought after item for millions of Australians this year will be gift cards. Whatever the age, one fifth of shoppers indicated they would spend the most amount of money on gift cards as part of their Christmas preparations.

“Millions of shoppers are expected to take advantage of extended trading hours over the next fortnight and retailers have prepared for the rush with extra staff on hand to meet customer demand during the peak shopping period.

“Stable interest rates and growing consumer confidence is helping to drive retail spending towards the long-term average annual growth rate of six per cent for the first time in five years. This consistent and incremental growth will mean the sector will contribute a little more than four per cent of GDP this year,” McPhee said.

Australian consumers are expected to spend an estimated $32.6 billion on Christmas preparations in the 30 days to Christmas – slightly stronger than the same period last year.

ANRA

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