An RBC holiday out-look suggests Canadians may be a little more frugal this festive season.
The RBC Canadian Consumer Outlook found that while the majority of Canadians appear to be in a gift-giving mood, they plan on spending less over the holidays than they did last year.
The survey suggests Canadians who celebrate year-end festivities will spend $1,182 on gifts, decorations, entertaining and travel - a figure which is down six per cent from last year's anticipated amount.
The bank says this season's holiday spending plans appear to be more in line with Canadians' 2010 holiday purchasing plans.
The survey suggests shoppers who plan on buying gifts are likely to shell out $629 on their purchases, down from the $640 anticipated last year.
RBC also suggests Canadians plan to cut their spending on holiday expenses other than gifts by 10 per cent from last year.
"It's clear that Canadians are conscious of their finances and are taking a closer look at what they can afford this holiday season," said Chris McEachern, financial planning role strategist, RBC Financial Planning.
The results of the RBC survey released Thursday stand in contrast to findings from some other analysts, who believe Canadians will be more generous with their finances over the holidays this year.
A Bank of Montreal survey released earlier this month projected an average 15 per cent jump in holiday spending over last Christmas, with respondents planning to spend $1,610 this season. And a report by Ernst & Young predicted Canadian holiday sales would rise 3.5 per cent over last year, supported by signs of improvement in consumer confidence.
A study from Deloitte projected Canadians will spend one to two per cent more this holiday season, but an increasing number will check for the best prices online before they head to the mall in a season it expected to be highly price competitive.
