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The festive season is always the best time to purchase for the best prices. Consumption of various items would be higher compared to the normal trends in the market. When we take the latter half of the year, the festivals we get to celebrate are Halloween, Diwali, and Christmas.
In Europe and the United States of America, the time of celebration is Halloween. Specifically, in the United States, the highlight, with sales and costumes of ghosts and ghouls, and not to miss the tradition of trick and treat.
The pattern observed in the United States
This year the sales and celebrations seem to have picked up way earlier than anticipated, with the sales estimates going way higher than projected. Despite the high prices of ‘sugar’, sales of candy and chocolates have not shown a slowdown during the season. The National Retail Federation has seen a massive rise of 14 percent in sales of candy compared to the previous year. Prominent brands such as Hershey’s, Kit Kat, and M&M have seen a massive sweep of the shelves recording high sales numbers. The chocolate industry in the States is expected to make up for its losses in the coming months through the end of the year, since the slump in sales seen in the first quarter of 2023. Cocoa also has seen a massive rise in price, in recent months. But the industry is hopeful to make a reasonably good profit by the end of the year.
The economy seems to be in a difficult position, with tight spending patterns and depleting savings among consumers. To top it, there are high rents and student loan repayments, deviating the consumers from consuming more than usual. There is a decline in terms of eat-outs and traveling expenses, during times of festive season such as Easter and now Halloween. Similar expenditure trends among consumers are expected during Christmas as well.
The pattern observed in India
In India, the situation is stuck in the lines of inflation scene has not seen any dampening. With elevated inflation in India, the festive season of Diwali would show some slightly higher levels of consumption across the nation. There has been a rise in sales in our online shopping platforms are observed, showing some revival in the consumption pattern in the country. The use of online purchases of gifts and food has gone up by a significant 16-18 percent as per reports. The sales of sweets and snacks in the country have risen during this season. It seems to be promising in terms of the consumption front. When we look at the gold market in recent months, seem to have shown a very lack of luster performance in sales. At the beginning of October, there was a trend of high prices, with prices going as high as 70000-75000/-, as per prominent analysts and price forecasters. But with the festive season for the remaining part of the year and wedding season still in line, the trend may reverse. Overall, consumption seems to have picked up in the Indian market.
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