A new survey has found that American consumers are not feeling very good heading into the year-end holiday shopping season.
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Most Americans have a downbeat outlook on the economy and expect to find higher prices on store shelves this December, according to an annual survey published by Deloitte. A majority of consumers (57%) said they expect the economy to weaken in 2026. That compares with 30% who expected a weaker economy ahead of the holiday shopping season in 2024.
Deloitte polled 4,000 respondents as part of its survey and said this year’s outlook among U.S. consumers is the most negative since the holiday sentiment poll began in 1997. The gloomy outlook doesn’t bode well for major U.S. retailers such as Amazon (AMZN), Walmart (WMT), and Costco (COST) that rely on a year-end sales boost during the holidays.
Less Spending
Seventy-seven percent of people surveyed said they expect higher prices on holiday items this year, up from 69% in 2024, according to Deloitte. Consequently, consumers plan to spend an average of $1,595 during the holidays this year, 10% less than they spent a year ago.
Worse, the lower anticipated spending cuts across all household income groups and nearly all generations, Deloitte found. Yet it was especially significant among younger shoppers. Gen Z consumers between the ages of 18 and 28 said they plan to spend an average of 34% less this holiday season. Millennials between the ages of 29 and 44 expect to spend an average of 13% less.
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