PSCU Payments Index December 2023: A Deep Dive into Holiday Spending – Part 2

In the December 2023 edition of the PSCU Payments Index, we present the second installment of our three-part Deep Dive series on holiday spending, which includes the results of the Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping period. According to the National Retail Foundation, a record 200.4 million consumers shopped on Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday. Card spending growth for November increased year over year for debit, while credit activity held steady, largely driven by digital spending.

Key takeaways include:

• Year-over-year growth rates for payment cards were more sizeable for debit than credit, with debit purchase growth up 5% compared to 0.5% for credit.
• Holiday spending in the Goods sector improved in November when compared to October. Year-over-year growth in purchases for the overall Goods sector was down 0.1% for credit and up 4.4% for debit in November. For the cumulative holiday season, Card Not Present (CNP) growth outpaced Card Present (CP) growth for both credit and debit transactions. For the five-day peak shopping period that includes Black Friday to Cyber Monday, year-over-year Goods sector debit purchases (+5.6%) grew more than Goods sector credit purchases (+3.1%).
• The Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) increased 0.1% in November, while the 12-month rate of inflation was up 3.1%. Shelter continued to rise and offset a decline in Gasoline. Excluding the volatile Energy and Food sectors, the core CPI index increased 0.3% in November, putting the 12-month Core CPI index at 4.0%
• Mobile Wallets continue to gain popularity. For November, credit mobile wallet transactions represented 3.5% of overall credit transactions and debit mobile wallet transactions represented 6.0% of overall debit transactions.

Subscribe to our mailing list to receive the PSCU Payments Index delivered directly to your inbox each month.