People in the UK are still likely to spend a significant amount on Christmas this year, despite fears that the global credit crunch may cause festive belt tightening.
Disposable income levels have fallen this year, head of media at the British Retail Consortium Richard Dodd said, but consumers still like to buy seasonal things.
People are feeling less well off, he said, as "a result of interest rate rises and also other costs having risen sharply, as well as mortgages, including utility bills, fuel bills and tax bills".
But Mr Dodd added that consumers will still probably spend money in the traditional way. "The thing with Christmas is that people usually … decide that they will have the presence of the food and drink they want for Christmas, which means that Christmas usually turns out all right for retailers even if it’s not spectacular."
In general, he added, more is spent in December than during any other month of the year. This year's forecast is for spending to remain at a similar level to that recorded last Christmas.
