Put down that ‘Frozen’ snow globe…

It’s official, we can’t help ourselves at Christmas. When it comes to the annual festive splurge, Irish shoppers are a league apart.

According to a report in PwC’s Global Economy Watch, Irish shoppers significantly out-spent their European and US counterparts last Christmas, with an average spend of $1,184 (€946) per person.

The only other country to come close to this was the UK, whose shoppers spent an average of $1,065 per person, followed by the US ( $776), Canada ($682), France ( $574), Germany ($520) and Italy ($462).

Bringing up the rear in the euro zone were Greece and Spain with spends of $188 and $184 respectively, barely a sixth of the average Irish outlay.

The PwC study, which bases its findings on annual household consumption data and monthly retail sales, also indicates Irish shoppers topped the Christmas spending league back in 2007 and 2003.

It found the average Irish spend last year at $1,184 was still about 5 per cent below the 2007 average of $1,244, however.

David McGee, PwC Ireland Retail Partner, said: "Latest indicators point to an improvement in the Irish consumer environment with modest recovery in the retail sector, albeit it from a weak base."

“There are also signs that online internet shopping is on the increase and the real challenge for Irish retailers is to ensure that they capture the full commercial benefits of digital.”

“The results of the survey highlight that Ireland has maintained its number one position in terms of Christmas spend for 2003, 2007 and 2013 and hopefully this retail cheer can be sustained into the new year,” he added.

The PwC’s analysis indicates total spending over the Christmas period last year in the major Western economies amounted to around $445 billion.

PwC UK senior economist Richard Boxshall: "Some of the scars of the financial crisis are still visible in Christmas spending habits: US Christmas spending remains 10 per cent behind that of 2007 in real terms.

“In Greece, real per person Christmas spending dropped by around 60 per cent overall in the six years to 2013.”

Spanish and Portuguese real Christmas spending per person also remains significantly below 2007 levels.