There will be no shortage of ghosts or goblins this Halloween as 148 million Americans partake in some sort of Halloween celebration, spending considerably more than they did last year. According to the National Retail Federation, Americans will spend an average of $66.28 on costumes, candy and decorations, up from $56.31 last year and comparable to the $66.54 average spent in 2008. Total spending for the holiday is expected to reach $5.8 billion. Other findings from the NRF:
· Costumes will take up the largest portion of a person’s budget, averaging $23.37. They’ll also spend an average of $20.29 on candy, $18.66 on decorations, and $3.95 on greeting cards.
· This year, the highest percentage of people in the survey’s history will dress up, with 40.1% of people planning to don a costume, up from 33.4% last year. 11.5% will dress up their pets as well.
· 33.3% of people will throw and/or attend a party, while 72.2% will hand out candy, 46.3% will carve a pumpkin, 20.8% will visit a haunted house, and 31.7% will take their children trick-or-treating.
