Rome, 23 December (LaPresse) – With two days to go until Christmas, shopping for the festive table is in full swing, but the picture remains one of caution: for Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas Day lunch, total spending is estimated at around €3.3 billion, a slight decrease (around -5%) compared to last year. This figure reflects two parallel trends: the desire to celebrate, with traditions and gastronomic excellence, and greater attention to the budget, with more controlled choices. This estimate is provided by Confesercenti based on its usual survey on food consumption and public establishments conducted with Ipsos on a sample of about 1,000 consumers. Christmas remains above all a domestic ritual: almost three out of four Italians (72%) will spend the holidays at home or with relatives, with an even more marked preference among the over-34s (73%) and in the South (73%), while among the under-34s the figure drops to 69% and in the North it stands at 70%. The “social” dimension remains present but limited: 9% will be at friends' houses, but among younger people this rises to 12% (compared to 8% of those over 34) and in the South and Islands it reaches 10%. Out-of-home celebrations remain stable: 5% will choose a restaurant or public establishment, with a peak in the Centre (7%), while a further 2% indicate a rented location, an option that is more frequent in the North (4%) and among those under 34 (3%). The percentage of those who will spend the holidays travelling is limited: travel or holidays account for 6% overall, but reach 8% among the under-34s and 7% in the North. Other solutions are residual (1%), while 5% have yet to decide, a percentage that increases among the over-34s and in the South (both at 6%).
© Copyright LaPresse
