BAT Stiftung Fur Zukunftsfragen (foundation for future studies) Publishes a new European Survey

HAMBURG -

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HAMBURG, September 17 /PRNewswire/ –

www.presseportal.de/pm/12459/bat_british_american_tobacco_germany

- Only a Few Europeans Can Still Afford to Take Holiday.

- Consumer Spending in Times of Crisis

Taking holiday means travelling. This is no longer the case for most Europeans. Just a third of those asked (33%) spent money on a holiday of at least five days in the last twelve months. This is according to the latest representative survey conducted by the German BAT Stiftung fur Zukunftsfragen, in which over 12,000 persons from the age of 14 and in the ten European countries of Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Poland, Russia, Spain and Switzerland were asked about their spending behaviour. “Not a single branch has been left unaffected by the economic and financial crisis - not even the travel industry. Many people are uneasy and simply do not know how the economic situation will develop in the future. As a consequence, many have spent ‘the most beautiful weeks of the year’ at home”, says Dr Ulrich Reinhardt, the foundation’s tourism and Europe expert.

VISITS TO RESTAURANTS PREFERRED OVER THE THEATRE.

SPENDING IS ESPECIALLY DOWN IN THE AREA OF CULTURE

When money is tight, people start to once again ask the age-old questions: What is important in life? And what can I do without if necessary? The only areas where most Europeans don’t cut on spending is “Mobile Phones” (53%) and “Eating Out” (54%). On the contrary, people are increasingly spending less in the area of culture. Case in point: in the last twelve months, only every fifth of those asked has been to the theatre and only every seventh has enjoyed a concert (13%), museum (14%) or theme park (16%) visit. Europeans hardly spent any money even on cinema tickets (37%), a short holiday trip of two or four days (32%) or a sports event (18%). However, much more money is now spent on domestic leisure offers. In all of Europe, magazines (48%), CDs/DVDs (43%) and books (42%) have gained in popularity. Dr Ulrich Reinhardt explains: “The people don’t know how much they can continue to afford and in times of crisis, choose to spend money on lower-cost offers for home.”

Contact: Stiftung fur Zukunftsfragen Eine Initiative von British American Tobacco Dr. Ulrich Reinhardt Tel. +49-40-4151-2448 www.stiftungfuerzukunftsfragen.de

Source: STIFTUNG FUR ZUKUNFTSFRAGEN- eine Initiative von British American Tobacco

Contact: Stiftung fur Zukunftsfragen, Eine Initiative von British American Tobacco, Dr. Ulrich Reinhardt, Tel. +49-40-4151-2448, https://www.stiftungfuerzukunftsfragen.de