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Canadians' savings take a hit over the holiday season, as shoppers set budgets aside: RBC Poll

T.RY | February 3, 2022

One-third of Canadians polled went over budget, but spent less than previous year
Fewer Canadians are feeling positive about their financial health in 2022
NOMI Find & Save helping users find and put aside average of $429 monthly in savings

TORONTO, Feb. 3, 2022 /CNW/ - Eager to celebrate this past holiday season, one-third (33%) of Canadians went over-budget in their gift-giving enthusiasm – up eight percentage points from last year. The good news: while these shoppers spent an average of $414 more than intended, this is much less than the previous year's record high of $588, according to the annual RBC Post-Holiday Spending & Saving Insights Poll.

Across the country, Quebec and B.C. consumers exceeded their budgets the most ($476 and $454 respectively); those in Saskatchewan/Manitoba and Atlantic Canada overspent the least ($320 each).

While debit/cash was the preferred payment method for holiday season purchases for almost half of Canadians surveyed (48%), this dropped down seven points from the previous year (55%). Meanwhile, credit card use increased by six points (43% vs. 37%).

By average expenditure, this season's most popular gift categories shifted too. Gifting experiences to family and friends jumped to top of the list ($160 vs. $91 in 2020), pushing gift cards down into second ($115 vs. $121) and electronics into third ($90 vs. $104). By gender, male shoppers spent the most on giving experiences ($198), followed by electronics ($130) and gift cards ($129). Women also spent the most on giving experiences ($123), followed by gift cards ($101) and toys ($76).

"It's easy to see why giving experiences has grown in importance during the pandemic, as many are placing more significance on the gift of time together with family and friends. We also saw an increase in the amount Canadians gifted to charities on behalf of themselves or others over the holiday season, to help those in need," notes Flora Do, Vice-President, Term Investments & Savings and RBC InvestEase. "When each new year begins, the challenge for some becomes how to pay for their generosity over the holiday season and get savings back on track."

Canadians who spent more than intended are now looking at ways to manage their holiday debts. Three-in-ten responded they are using their credit cards to carry these expenses and intending to spend less on entertainment or other discretionary costs (29% and 28% respectively) to offset their holiday expenditures, while 7% don't yet know how they will pay off those bills.

The RBC poll also found that fewer Canadians feel positive about their financial health in 2022 after their holiday spending.

Those who said they feel great – "I stuck to what I planned to spend" – dropped to 42% from 48% (highest in B.C. at 51%)
Those who feel good – "I spent a bit more than anticipated, but I'm back on track" – dropped from 30% to 26% (highest in Saskatchewan/Manitoba at 36%).

Meanwhile, those who simply feel okay – "I spent more than expected, but I've got a plan to get back on track by or before April" – rose to 24% from 18% (highest in Quebec at 29%).

As for their ability to save anything extra this year, almost one-quarter (22%) responded they aren't saving anything now and don't think they will have anything extra to set aside in 2022.

"This is where digital savings solutions can help," says Do. "A good example is NOMI Find & Save, which uses predictive technology to find extra money in your bank account that it thinks you won't miss and automatically sets that money aside as savings. All you have to do is activate this feature in the RBC Mobile app and NOMI Find & Save does the rest – and you see savings you didn't know you had."

Over the past year, NOMI Find & Save has helped clients set aside an average of $429 monthly in savings – savings which can add up to almost $5,150 extra at year-end.

Clients can also use NOMI Budgets and NOMI Forecast to help get their savings back on track. NOMI Budgets proactively analyzes a client's spending history, recommends an appropriate budget and sends timely updates to help clients keep on top of their finances in a seamless and convenient way. NOMI Forecast provides clients with a quick seven-day forecast into their future cash flow by forecasting upcoming preauthorized payment withdrawals from their deposit account, providing a more comprehensive view of their account activity.

"When you don't have to think about building up your savings – it's just happening for you automatically – you can have a nice surprise awaiting you when the next holiday season comes around, or whenever you've got something in mind that you've been meaning to save for," adds Do. "Each year, our poll asks Canadians what they would do with 'found' money and they always have lots of ideas. NOMI is helping clients find that money so they can make those ideas a reality."

2022 RBC Post-Holiday Spending & Saving Insights Poll – Regional & Gender Comparisons

ALL RESPONDENTS	CAN	BC	AB	SK/MB	ON	QC	AC	M	F
Yes, I overspent over holiday season	33%	28%	26%	35%	36%	32%	35%	32%	34%
Average overspent	$414	$454	$436	$320	$390	$476	$320	$452	$378

PURCHASE PAYMENT METHOD	CAN	BC	AB	SK/MB	ON	QC	AC	M	F
Cash/Debit	48%	40%	42%	55%	47%	52%	59%	49%	48%
Credit card(s)	43%	49%	50%	37%	46%	38%	32%	43%	43%
Gift cards	4%	5%	3%	3%	3%	5%	4%	4%	4%
Reward points	3%	5%	4%	1%	3%	1%	1%	2%	3%
Line of credit	1%	*	1%	2%	1%	1%	1%	1%	1%
Annual bonus	1%	*	*	1%	1%	1%	2%	1%	1%

* Sample size too small

OVERSPENDERS: PAYING OFF HOLIDAY SEASON COSTS	CAN	BC	AB	SK/MB	ON	QC	AC	M	F
Carry costs on credit cards, pay off balance right away	16%	8%	19%	18%	19%	14%	13%	18%	15%
Carry costs on credit card, pay off the balance within two months or more	13%	13%	18%	10%	14%	9%	10%	14%	12%
Cut discretionary costs (entertainment, etc.)	27%	24%	28%	30%	29%	30%	16%	24%	31%
Save in other areas	28%	31%	23%	25%	29%	26%	28%	27%	28%
No idea how to pay these costs yet	7%	5%	7%	6%	7%	9%	8%	6%	8%

ALL RESPONDENTS: FEELINGS ABOUT 2022 FINANCIAL HEALTH	CAN	BC	AB	SK/MB	ON	QC	AC	M	F
Great	42%	51%	43%	37%	42%	38%	41%	42%	42%
Good	26%	25%	24%	36%	25%	24%	27%	27%	25%
OK	24%	17%	26%	16%	24%	29%	22%	23%	24%
Bad	6%	4%	3%	7%	6%	7%	7%	5%	6%
Terrible	3%	2%	5%	3%	4%	2%	3%	3%	4%

SAVE EXTRA $ PER MONTH	CAN	BC	AB	SK/MB	ON	QC	AC	M	F
Not saving anything now	22%	27%	25%	23%	22%	19%	24%	19%	25%

USE FOR 'FOUND' $	CAN	BC	AB	SK/MB	ON	QC	AC	M	F
Add to general savings	33%	35%	33%	27%	36%	28%	38%	32%	34%
Pay down debt	32%	26%	34%	30%	28%	40%	39%	32%	33%
Save for a particular purpose	25%	28%	29%	25%	27%	21%	24%	22%	29%
Invest	21%	16%	22%	23%	26%	18%	13%	27%	15%
Treat myself	20%	17%	16%	14%	19%	29%	14%	22%	19%
Give to charity	7%	8%	8%	5%	8%	4%	4%	8%	5%
No idea	6%	5%	3%	9%	4%	8%	8%	6%	6%

AVERAGE AMOUNT SPENT/CATEGORY	CAN	BC	AB	SK/MB	ON	QC	AC	M	F
Toys	$89	$94	$74	$81	$94	$86	$90	$103	$76
Electronics (mobile devices, gaming, etc.)	$90	$75	$66	$175	$105	$73	$59	$130	$53
Entertainment (books, video games, iTunes)	$58	$123	$54	$38	$54	$39	$46	$79	$39
Giving experiences to family, friends	$160	$386	$163	$116	$138	$86	$135	$198	$123
Gift cards	$114	$82	$115	$93	$140	$99	$112	$129	$101
Gifts for pets	$26	$21	$33	$19	$32	$18	$21	$20	$30
Giving to charities	$70	$265	$83	$20	$50	$16	$24	$99	$43

About the 2022 RBC Post-Holiday Spending & Saving Insights Poll
A total of 2,000 surveys were completed online by Ipsos among Canadians aged 18+ from January 4th to 6th, 2022 using the Ipsos I-Say Panel for this poll, which has been conducted on behalf of RBC since 2011. Quota sampling and weighting was employed in order to balance demographics and ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the actual population of Canadians, according to Census data. The precision of online polls is measured using credibility interval. In this case, the results are accurate to within ±2.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what the results would have been had the entire population of adults in Canada been surveyed. Credibility intervals will be wider for smaller subsets of the population. Where appropriate, tracking has been included to past years.

About RBC's NOMI
Since it launched in 2017, NOMI Find & Save has now helped clients find more than $2 billion and set it aside in their NOMI Find & Save Account. Over the past year, savings set aside in users' NOMI Find & Save Accounts have averaged $429 a month, which can add up to almost $5,150 extra at year-end. Through predictive technology, NOMI Find & Save anticipates a client's overall monthly spending, finds extra money that it thinks won't be missed and automatically sets it aside as savings. Clients can access their money at any time, through free transfers to their source RBC Royal Bank personal chequing account. They can view their balance, pause and restart, 24/7 and the two-way transfer feature automatically transfers this money back when they need it. NOMI Budgets, introduced in 2019, has helped more than 1.3 million customers set more than 2.3 million budgets. NOMI Budgets takes the thinking — and the manual calculator work — out of setting up a budget. It takes a close look at a client's spending and recommends a personalized monthly budget based on their spending and saving habits, keeping them on track by sending regular updates through the RBC Mobile app's budget tracker. By simplifying savings and the budgeting process, we are making it easier for Canadians to manage their spending and make informed financial decisions. Most recently, NOMI Forecast is helping clients build confidence in what payments are upcoming. NOMI Forecast delivers next generation cash flow forecasting and insights into the palm of clients' hands. It provides clients with a quick seven-day forecast into their future cash flow, providing a more comprehensive view of their account activity. It helps remove the stress of tracking when recurring bills need to be paid, the amount due, and how it could impact future cash flow by showing you your upcoming preauthorized payments from any deposit account. NOMI Forecast was developed alongside Borealis AI, an award-winning artificial intelligence group backed by RBC. More information on all NOMI capabilities is available at www.rbc.com/NOMI.

About RBC
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