October 29, 2026
Nearly half of Jamaican consumers plan to spend more this Christmas
Written bySugar Ray Thomas
Close to 50 percent of Jamaican consumers surveyed say they plan to spend more this Christmas than they did last year.
Additionally, more than half of the 600 persons surveyed are planning to use their personal savings to fund various activities for the season.
This, despite consumer confidence being low and expectations being high that the economy will get worse, over the next 12 months.
Executive Chairman of Market Research Services, Don Anderson made the disclosure while presenting the confidence indices for the third quarter of 2026.
He said 70 percent of those surveyed say they intend to participate in activities for Christmas while the remainder had no special plan.
48 percent said they expect to participate in family gatherings while 17 percent plan to renovate or decorate their homes.
Another 11 percent of consumers are planning to spend on entertainment activities.
Mr. Anderson said consumers will finance these activities by various means including personal savings.
Mr. Anderson said those who indicated they have no Christmas plan as yet, also expressed an intent to spend more for the season.
He said most Jamaicans plan to use discount offers for their Christmas shopping.
