Moneycontrol.com posted an article today revealing the results of survey conducted by American Express, showing that two-thirds of consumers in the US still have some holiday shopping to complete, with 41 percent planning on finishing at least one week prior to Christmas. Additionally, one-fourth of all US consumers will still be shopping in the week before Christmas, including on Christmas Eve.

Many people are waiting longer to do their shopping, as they believe “…that deals will get sweeter as the clock winds down,” said Mona Hamouly, a spokeswoman for the survey. In fact 62 percent of consumers are waiting until the last minute to finish their holiday shopping. But there must be a reason why shoppers will tolerate the added stress of last minute shopping. The report says that 31 percent are waiting n order to find the hottest deals before the season is over; 21 percent are still saving money or are busy, and a mere 10 percent are waiting for their last paycheck.

In terms of spending, in the next 30 days,  65 percent of shoppers plan to spend the same or more than they did over the past 30 days, while one-third plan to spend less according to the same survey. Apparently, the negative economic climate has been a substantial factor in consumer sentiment as many are pinching all their pennies this year. Of those that plan on spending more in the next 30 days, 56 percent say most of their spending will be directed to holiday gifts. Of those that plan to spend less, 40 percent say it’s because they are trying to save money, prices have increased, or they are sticking to a strict budget, while one-third say they are trying to reduce their debt.

Via Money Control