Mastercard Economics Institute: this is what consumers spend the most on during the crisis

Online food spending is 70% higher than before the epidemic

The latest report from the Mastercard Economics Institute wants to answer three key questions about consumers’ shopping preferences – what, where and when are they willing to change? The most important findings of the study are: What? Higher prices in recent years have forced consumers to rethink their spending. The focus of the discourse on this was on expenses related to travel and food.

Travel is still important to consumers. Flight ticket bookings this summer (May-August) exceeded the 2019 level by 15% despite the price increase. Hungarians prefer to buy tickets for medium-distance flights, compared to 2019, 25.09% more bookings were made, while 18% more bookings were made for longer flights in the same period. The convenience offered by restaurants continues to appeal to consumers. Restaurant spending is up 25% this year compared to the same period in 2021, while food spending is up 14%.