TORONTO — A new report suggests Canadians plan to spend less this holiday season compared with last year, but more than half are willing to pay more for Canadian-made products over imported options. The report by PwC Canada says 54 per cent of those surveyed say they would choose a more expensive Canadian-made product over a similar imported option, up from 49 per cent last year. The shift comes as the firm’s holiday outlook report says Canadians plan to spend an average of $1,487 this holiday season, down 11 per cent from last year. PwC added that its survey was conducted in July and early August, before the recent escalation in the trade fight with the United States, so the findings may under-represent current Canadian sentiment. Adam Boutros, partner and national consumer markets leader at PwC Canada, says more Canadians than ever want their money to stay in Canada. The report was based on an online survey of 1,016 respondents between July 30 and Aug. 6. The Canadian Research Insights Council, an industry organization that promotes polling standards, says online surveys cannot be assigned a margin of error because they do not randomly sample the population. --- This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 6, 2026.
