SYDNEY, Nov. 11 (Xinhua) -- Australians will spend a whopping 48.1 billion Australian dollars (36.1 billion U.S. dollars) this Christmas with consumers expected to blow another 2.3 percent extra this year compared to previous years.
The Australian Retailers Association (ARA) and Roy Morgan Research said in a joint statement on Friday that the bulk of the spending will be recorded from Nov. 15 right up to the Christmas eve on items such as apparel, food, departmental stores, hospitality and others.
ARA Executive Director Russell Zimmerman told Xinhua that the projected figures would consist of spending derived from brick-and-mortar shops as well as online shopping.
"Approximately 6.5 percent of the total spending will be made on online shopping alone," he said.
"We know clothing, accessories and footwear have been strong in recent months, and I expect this to continue as Christmas is just the time to gift that new bag or pair of shoes."
"On the other end of the spectrum, it is encouraging to see a 5.7-percent growth rate predicted for the hospitality category, a strong uptick as Australians are expected to ramp up patronage to restaurants, bars and fast-food retailers in the festive season," he said.
ARA, which has been providing pre-Christmas spending forecasts for more than 20 years, had accurately predicted the total Christmas spending figure of 46.7 billion Australian dollars (35.53 billion U.S. dollars) in 2015 with actual sales reaching 47 billion Australian dollars (35.76 billion U.S. dollars) for that period.
At the moment New South Wales is leading the pack with the most amount of Christmas spending standing at 15 billion Australian dollars (11 billion U.S. dollars) followed by Victoria (9 billion U.S. dollars) and Queensland (6 billion U.S. dollars).
The projected figures were derived after factors including consumer sentiment and unemployment were taken into consideration, Zimmerman said.
"In light of the economic pressures faced by the mining states, the stationary growth figures of Western Australia and the Northern Territory are not surprising, though we are hopeful of improvements in subsequent months," he said.
"Traditionally, the biggest shopping period of the year is the week before Christmas, though many Australians are set to cross of their Christmas lists early and hit the shops from mid-November when we see sales start to increase."
