Valentine's Day economics

by Rob Peters | February 14, 2008 at 10:46 am

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They're saying the average person will spend about 120 bucks on Valentine's Day this year, for a cumulative total of $17 billion. Perhaps it's better to be a non-practicing romantic.

Valentine’s Day, the traditional day of love in the West and the second most important holiday for jewelry retailers, has arrived. Spending per person on Valentine’s Day, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF), is expected to be fairly similar to last year, at $122.98 ($119.67 in 2007).

The NRF reported in its 2008 Valentine’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions survey that total spending on Valentine’s Day is expected to total $17.02 billion, a figure reached through total extrapolation of the U.S. population of adults aged 18 and over.

Traditional gifts, such as candy, flowers and jewelry will see a slight decrease in popularity this year, with more consumers preferring gifts of experience and gift cards. Almost half of all consumers surveyed (48.2 percent) said they planned to celebrate with a special night out, compared to 45.3 percent in 2007, and 12.3 percent will give a gift card, up from 11.3 percent last year.