Inflation might be a potential spoiler for the US holiday shopping season
The continued effect of inflation on shoppers’ wallets makes it likely that this year’s holiday shopping season will be less busy than in years past.
In the United States, consumers are facing levels of inflation not seen in decades, which has led to a slowdown in discretionary spending on items that are not necessary for daily life.
As consumers continue to be concerned about the state of the economy and concentrate their efforts on savings, a survey from Mastercard’s Spending Pulse predicts that the next Christmas season will have fewer empty shelves and shorter lineups.
“As inflation hurts consumer budgets, bargain hunting is predicted to be in full effect this Christmas season,” Mastercard writes in the research that was released on Monday.
According to Michelle Meyer, Chief Economist for the United States at the Mastercard Economics Institute, consumers may look for ways to deal with inflation this holiday season. For example, they may look for deals or make trade-offs that give them more room in their gift-giving budgets.
However, there is a possibility that better news is on the way.
Meyer said that “new job growth, growing earnings, and remaining savings should have many consumers ready and able to spend.” [C]onsumers should be ready and able to spend because of the combination of these three factors.
It has been speculated by industry professionals that throughout the next Christmas season, consumers will be exposed to a much larger number of sales and discounts than in prior years.
