‘It’s Kind of Scary’: How Inflation Will Impact Gifting This Holiday Season

Gift-giving goes hand-in-hand with the holiday season, but for American families feeling inflation‘s burn this year, it’s more stressful than ever before.

To combat soaring prices and provide their children with the holiday experience they’ve come to expect, many parents have had to tighten already strict budgets, CNN reported.

Related: How to Calm Financial Panic During Inflation Surges

But it’s no easy feat: Inflation increased 8.6% from May 2021 to May 2022, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — the largest 12-month jump since the period ending in December 1981.

As of October, the average American household was spending $433 more per month to purchase the same goods and services as it did the previous year, per Moody’s analysis reported by CNBC.

CNN spoke to second-grade teacher Lindsay Cook, whose family is living paycheck-to-paycheck for the first time.

Cook and her husband, a school security officer, have had to pull from their savings and rely on credit cards to keep up with essential bills — and holiday budgeting for two kids makes it that much harder.

“There’s no sort of wiggle room,” Cook told the outlet. “And it’s kind of scary.”

Related: 5 Ways to Really Get Away From Work During the Holidays

Despite recent inflationary pressures, the National Retail Federation forecasted holiday retail sales growth in November and December — up between 6% and 8% from 2021.