Shoppers are refusing to get stingy with their money for the upcoming Spring Festival, a recent survey has discovered.

Guangzhou Daily conducted a poll earlier this month with the Guangzhou-based Modern International Market Research Co Ltd to find out people's spending plans for the holidays, which begin on January 26, amid the global economic crisis.

And in a survey of 500 residents, most aged¹ 18 to 50 years old and earning no more than 5,000 yuan ($730) a month, 70 percent said they would not be put off splashing the cash during this year's Spring Festival holiday.

In all, 55 percent expected to part with around the same amount of money as last year, with 15 percent saying they would slightly increase their spending.

Each family will spend on average 3,405 yuan during the seven-day Spring Festival holidays, 556 yuan more than last year, the survey said.

The majority of those interviewed said they would take part in the three traditional activities to celebrate the festival: visiting friends and relatives, shopping and going to flower markets.

Some 63 percent said they would hit the shopping malls during the holidays, 14 percent more than last year, with fruit and candies set to be the most popular purchase (92 percent). Around 60 percent said they would also buy liquor and tobacco.

"For Spring Festival we won't be stingy with our money no matter how the financial market is. But for things we don't have to buy now we will postpone² our plan," said Huang Zhenqiu, a Guangzhou housewife.

Huang, like most residents, said she will buy more food for the festival than at other times, such as chickens, candies and cookies, as well as flowers to decorate her home. And since visiting friends and relatives is a must during Spring Festival, Huang said she would also spend money on gifts.

Tony Hoggett, South China managing director for Tesco, the world's leading retailer³ based in the UK, told China Daily: "Even though the financial crisis has impacted on South China's economy, people's desire to shop has not declined, according to the performance of our supermarkets."

"Now, people eat out less and go traveling less, so they go shopping in supermarkets more than before," he said.

The company opened its second store in Guangzhou on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the shopping survey also found that people's desire to buy real estate is not as high as to buying daily necessities for the home.

Only 1 percent of those polled said they would definitely buy a condo over the holidays, 9 percent said they were likely to buy one, while others said they were unsure or would not buy.