Canadians are cautiously embracing the shopping spirit this Christmas, with the majority planning to spend a little more this season compared to last year.

According to the annual American Express Holiday Shopping Survey, consumers plan to pay out an average total of $1,077 this year on gifts, entertainment and other holiday related spending, up 6.3% from $1,013 in 2001 but still down from $1,327 in 2000.

That’s roughly in line with what retailers are expecting, according to an Amex poll released last week, but the credit card company cautions that at this rate of growth it could take another four years to get back to the high-spending peak seen in 2000.

“We see these results as a positive sign that consumer confidence is slowly emerging from the long shadow cast by 9/11 and the year of uncertainty in the economy,” said Ava Kelly, director of marketing at American Express. “So it’s a more prudent shopper heading back to the malls this Christmas, careful not to overspend and concerned about not getting into debt.”

For those two-out-of-five people (42%) who plan to use Credit Cards for purchases this season, 68% will pay off their balances right away to avoid interest charges, up significantly from 52% last year.

Seventy per cent of those polled expect to spend the same or more this year, saying they can afford more and have fewer worries about job security, with nearly half of those who plan to spend more (47%) saying they will pay out at least $200 this holiday season.

Charitable giving is up this year, with 74% of Canadians planning to give to a charity either through a donation or by volunteering their time. Maritimer’s are the most likely to contribute at 87%.

The 2002 American Express Canadian Holiday Shopping Survey is based on telephone interviews conducted among random samples of 800 adult Canadians between November 13 and November 18. Samples of this size produce national results that can be considered accurate within 3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. The research was conducted by Leger Marketing.