Christmas Dinner Costs Slightly Decrease Due to Lower Turkey and Parsnip Prices
The cost of a traditional turkey Christmas dinner in the UK has slightly decreased this year, costing £32.46 compared to £32.57 last year. This reduction is mainly due to price falls in two key items: frozen turkeys and parsnips. The average price of frozen turkeys dropped by 3.6% to £13.52, while parsnips are now priced at 71p, down 0.4%. Despite these decreases, grocery price inflation stood at 4.7% in the month leading up to 30 November, which is higher than the official inflation rate of 3.6%.
Promotional offers accounted for 31.2% of all retail spending, an increase from 30% previously, and premium own-brand products made up £1 in every £20 spent. Data from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) indicated that consumers reduced their spending ahead of the 26 November budget. Pantheon Macroeconomics attributed this cautious behavior partly to speculation about pre-budget tax increases and also noted that November saw rainfall at 131% of the average.
The Treasury was contacted for comment on the matter.
