Figuratively Speaking

Percentage increase in the price index of the whimsical economic analysis by PNC Wealth Management based of the prices of gifts in the holiday classic "The Twelve Days of Christmas" from 2019 to 2021, and now totaling $41,205: 8.6

Cost for a partridge in a pear tree, up 6%: $222.68

Cost for five golden rings, up 8.5%: $895

Cost for 11 pipers piping, up 7.1%: $2,748.87

Source: PNC Financial Services Group.

Ranks of bicycles, gym equipment, sporting balls and guitars on the list of the hardest gifts to wrap, according to a survey by Slickdeals: 1, 2, 3, 4

Percentage of people who say they can identify a gift and who it's from based on how it has been wrapped: 56

Source: Slickdeals.

Percentage of holiday celebrants who are willing to explore ways to reduce their gift-giving costs this year, according to CreditCards.com: 76

Percentage who are seeking out coupons and store sales: 42

Percentage who are limiting gift exchanges to immediate family members: 39

Percentage who are giving homemade gifts: 24

Source: CreditCards.com.

Percentage of parents who blame the internet for their children no longer believing in Santa, according to a survey by Wriggly Toes: 16.5

Percentage who say Google searches are responsible for their kids discovering the truth: 33

Percentage of kids who say they were upset when they found out that Santa wasn't real: 30

Percentage who said they played along with the Santa shtick for a time, even after they realized it wasn't true: 65

Source: Wriggly Toes.

Percentage of gift-givers who are getting creative and saying they are very likely or might use an on-demand service like DoorDash to order last-minute gifts, according to an Oracle Retail study: 55

Percentage of people who fear porch pirates may steal a delivery: 32

Source: Oracle.

Percentage of workers who have received raises this past year, according to a MagnifyMoney survey of full-time workers: 58

Of those who received a pay increase this past year, percentage of men who say the increase was $5,000 or more annually, compared with 36% of women who say the same: 52

Source: LendingTree.

Entering December, percentage of Americans who had already finished or are almost done with their holiday shopping, according to an Ipsos Poll: 52

Ranks of gift cards and money on people's wish list across the country: 1

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Of Americans traveling for Christmas this year, percentage who will be staying in a hotel, according to a survey commissioned by the American Hotel and Lodging Association: 23

Source: American Hotel and Lodging Association.

Ranks of promotions, discounts and free shipping on the list of influences for shoppers purchasing gifts this holiday season, according to a Deloitte survey: 1, 2, 3

Source: Deloitte.

Idle Thought

"In recognizing the humanity of our fellow beings, we pay ourselves the highest tribute." -- Thurgood Marshall, U.S. Supreme Court Justice (1908-1993)

Percentage of Americans who say they will have more parties and get-togethers this holiday season than last season, according to a survey by the Christmas Tree Promotion Board: 51

Percentage who say they are putting up more decorations than last year: 51

Percentage who say they will be celebrating with more people than usual: 49

Source: Christmas Tree Promotion Board.

Average amount that parents will spend on gifts per child under 18 this holiday season, according to CreditCards.com: $276

Percentage more that men will spend than women on gifts for a significant other: 55

Source: CreditCards.com.

Percentage of gift-givers who will have gifts delivered to their home, according to an Oracle Retail study: 64

Percentage who say granular tracking of delivery status is very important: 62

Percentage who say fast delivery determines which retailers they order from: 36

Source: Oracle.

Percentage of Americans who identify wrapping gifts as the worst part of the holidays, according to a survey by Slickdeals: 52

Percentage who hate the task so much they prefer having a professional wrap their gifts and will do anything to avoid wrapping: 51

Source: Slickdeals.

Percentage of small businesses that report being fully recovered from the pandemic, according to a survey by Alignable: 27

Percentage of manufacturers that say they need more assistance from the federal government to bounce back: 81

Percentage of restaurants that say the same: 66

Source: Alignable.

Percentage of Americans who spend more time holiday shopping than managing their money, according to a survey by MyBankTracker.com: 13

Percentage who spend about the same amount of time on both: 34

Source: MyBankTracker.com.

Percentage of consumers who do not plan to spend at all this holiday season, more than double the number from 2020 (4.9%), according to a survey by Deloitte: 11.5

Percentage of this non-spender group who are from lower-income households, compared to 12% from higher-income households: 65

Source: Deloitte.

Percentage of Americans who were motivated to undertake home improvement projects recently by a desire to increase future sale value, according to a survey by Angi: 77

Percentage of men who are more likely to say they can do just as good a job as a pro, vs. 32% of women who say the same: 48

Source: Angi.

Ranks of a gift card, traditional holiday gifts, money, and a personalized or customized gift on the list of the most common types of gifts Americans plan to purchase this year, according to a Shutterfly poll conducted by Ipsos: 1, 2, 3, 4

Among those who have purchased personalized gifts, percentage who said the reason was to show family or friends that they care: 52

Percentage who said they think a personalized present carries more meaning than a typical gift: 44

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of people who are unaware how a common financing trick called "deferred interest" works, according to the 2021 Deferred Interest survey by WalletHub: 56

Number of times more that a shopper can spend on interest relative to a normal 0% credit card offer: 27.5

Percentage of store credit cards that have deferred interest: 49

Source: WalletHub.

Idle Thought

"Just as appetite comes by eating, so work brings inspiration." -- Igor Stravinsky, composer (1882-1971)

Percentage of consumers who say the coronavirus pandemic strengthened their loyalty to small businesses, according to a survey by LendingTree: 63

Percentage of Americans who know a small business in their community that permanently closed due to the pandemic: 63

Percentage of Americans who believe online retailers like Amazon hurt local businesses: 57

Source: LendingTree.

Of those who participate in a Secret Santa gift exchange, percentage who said they hate being roped into it because they never know what to get their designated exchangee, according to a survey by Slickdeals: 79

Percentage who admit they re-gift the items they've received from past Secret Santa exchanges: 89

Source: Slickdeals.

Percentage of people who previously bought artificial Christmas trees and switched to a real tree last year who wish they had made the change sooner, according to a survey by Christmas Tree Promotion Board: 89

Percentage of Americans planning to buy a real Christmas tree this year who point to its natural scent and the experience of decorating it as their favorite aspects of having a real tree: 54

Ranks of the first week of December and post-Thanksgiving weekend on the list of the most popular times they plan to buy a real tree: 1, 2

Source: Christmas Tree Promotion Board.

Current national average for a gallon of regular unleaded gas, according to AAA: $3.41

Average swipe fee percentage that banks charge merchants to process Visa and Mastercard credit card transactions, according to the Merchants Payments Coalition: 2.22

Swipe fee for a 10-gallon fill-up: 75 cents

Amount gas stations paid in swipe fees in 2020: $10.7 billion

Estimated amount that will be paid in 2021: $12.5 billion

Source: Merchants Payments Coalition.

Percentage of Americans who plan to send holiday cards or give personalized mementos and gifts to connect with family and friends this holiday season, according to a Shutterfly poll conducted by Ipsos: 44

Among those planning to send cards this year, percentage who will send traditional holiday messages: 63

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of Americans who are likely to travel for Christmas this year, up 24% over 2020, according to a survey commissioned by the American Hotel and Lodging Association: 33

Percentage of those who will be driving: 64

Source: American Hotel and Lodging Association.

Rank of the U.S. as the country most hit by ransomware in 2020 and 2021, according to data from Nordlocker: 1

Percentage of companies worldwide that became victims of ransomware: 37

Source: Nordlocker.

Percentage of holiday shoppers who expect to make most of their purchases using a debit card, according to a CreditCards.com report: 42

Percentage who said they will use credit cards: 38

Percentage who said they will use cash: 15

Percentage who cited buy now pay later services: 5

Source: CreditCards.com.

Percentage of Americans who say product images influence their purchases of consumer packaged goods, while 74% say images in search results are very or extremely helpful in determining which products to buy, according to a survey commissioned by NCSolutions: 49

Percentage of Americans who think it's extremely important to see an image of what a meal or dish will look like when it's fully prepared: 45

Source: NCSolutions.

Idle Thought

"The business of the poet and the novelist is to show the sorriness underlying the grandest things and the grandeur underlying the sorriest things." -- Thomas Hardy, novelist and poet (1840-1928)