Bangkokians set to splurge in festive season
Total spending by Bangkok people during the festive New Year season will amount to about Bt21.3 billion, up 12 per cent over last year, according to a Kasikorn Research Centre survey on spending behaviour.
The survey was conducted from December 1 to 10 this year, among 544 respondents aged between 15 and 55.
The survey estimated that spending on foods and beverages would be Bt6 billion (28.2 per cent), Bt4.5 billion in gifts to parents and siblings (21.1 per cent), Bt3.9 billion in travelling and accommodation (18.3 per cent), Bt3.9 billion for New Year gifts and souvenirs (18.3 per cent), and Bt2.8 billion for merit-making (13.1 per cent).
According to the survey, Bangkokians are keen to join in New Year celebrations as they are free from problems like the political unrest and floods they faced in the last couple of years. The top three activities they plan for the New Year festive season are buying gifts for others, merit-making, and parties with relatives and friends.
The survey found that Bangkokians will spend money from the end of December to January next year. They plan to buy New Year gifts at the end of the year or in the last week of December (61.7 per cent) and the spending will continue into the first week of next year (11 per cent).
This will benefit many business sectors, from manufacturing to retailing, merit-making tour, and food shops.
The top three products chosen by Bangkokians for their New Year gift baskets are nutritious and health foods (54.6 per cent), fruits (44.4 per cent), and vegetable and fruit juices (21.3 per cent). Their criteria in purchasing gift baskets are product quality (60.2 per cent), pricing (50.9 per cent), type of product (46.3 per cent), and value for money (29.6 per cent).
