Visa Europe predicts �833,000 will be spent every minute today
Today is set to be the busiest ever day for shopping in the UK, with Visa Europe expecting to process 26.5m transactions worth more than �1.2bn, as Britons rush to buy last-minute Christmas presents.
In both 2008 and last year, the busiest days were 23 December, and with Christmas Day falling on a Saturday this year Visa Europe predicts the trend will continue, despite the weather proving an obstacle for many shoppers.
The arctic conditions are estimated to have cost retailers up to �750m in lost sales. Figures published earlier this week showed the number of shoppers who ventured out at the weekend was down 20% on last year, with Wales and London hardest hit.
Whether a record day today will be enough to rescue the retail sector from a poor season remains to be seen. Stephen Robertson from the British Retail Consortium said it will be a "a nail-biting end to the year for retailers".
The Visa figures show the nation's shoppers spending an average of �833,000 a minute today, or almost �14,000 a second. This equates to year-on-year growth of about 20% on high street spending ? more than 70% of which is expected to be on Visa debit cards.
Research also commissioned by Visa Europe found that 40% of shoppers are planning to spend more on gifts than they did last year. Analysis of Christmas spending to date this year shows that, despite a cautious start, consumers are slowly picking up momentum with average year-on-year growth of 1.5% in real terms over the Christmas period to date.
Across Europe, Visa will process about 38m transactions today, and around ?2bn will be spent on Visa cards at retailers across the continent. During the busiest hour the group expects to process more than 1,000 transactions every second compared to 894 last year.
Visa bases its predictions on up-to-the-minute spending data and previous years' spending trends. More than �1 in every �4 spent in the UK is on a Visa card, making its data one of the most reliable indicators of trends in consumer spending.
Dr Steve Perry, commercial director at Visa Europe, said: "While the weather has affected some people, our data shows that despite a cautious start to the spending season in November, spending has been strong in the lead up to the busiest high street shopping day. With VAT set to rise from 17.5% to 20% in January, consumers are bringing forward big ticket purchases this month, which has given a boost to spend levels.
"We've already seen strong growth in online sales and we expect the high street to see strong year-on-year growth in Visa card usage of around 20%. Extended opening hours and heavy discounting are likely to draw in the crowds and capture those who prefer to see and feel their products prior to purchasing."
Visa also expects to see record online consumer spending on Christmas Day this year, with an estimated 960,000 online transactions worth up to �36m made throughout the day as retailers launch their seasonal sales on Christmas Eve this year.
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