One third of Canadians are expected to reduce their spending this holiday season according to Deloitte’s annual retail outlook.
Deloitte New Brunswick managing partner Steve Lund says economic concerns, higher food prices, and job loss are major factors for cutting back.
The average Canadian home will spend about $1,400 – a drop of 18 percent over last year.
But Lund feels the Moncton region may actually outperform that figure based on a recent study from the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council.
“Compared to many other regions and even other cities, Moncton is doing very, very well on employment. So as a function of spend that means there’s going to be more money available.”
In addition, Lund says housing prices in Moncton are up this year by 15 percent.
He adds the only downside is that immigration has been down significantly since the pandemic began.
Lund says consumer confidence may be lower this year but he adds Canadians are feeling more charitable when it comes to worthy causes.
COVID-19 has accelerated the shift to online shopping – almost half of those surveyed have done it since the pandemic began and 25 percent have taken advantage of delivery services.
“The biggest difference relates to a reduction in travel – with COVID is not super surprising. There’s also a bit of a decrease in dining out because of COVID restrictions that exist,” Lund says.
More than half of those surveyed believe Canada’s economy will weaken in 2021 – which is up substantially from a year ago.
