We notice you are visiting from a U.S. Internet provider. 
18/12/2009 -
Canadian retailers have been seeing more debit and credit card processing activity this holiday season as consumers feel confident enough to resume spending, said a recent report.According to data released this week by one of Canada's leading payment processing companies, retail spending during the first weekend of December was 5 percent higher than the same weekend in the previous year, while the second weekend saw 6 percent higher sales than in 2008.
Specifically, department stores seemed to be getting the most attention from consumers, followed by clothing retailers and then drugstores.
The report also found that consumers now prefer to pay with debit cards over credit cards, though both debit and credit card processing saw higher volumes compared to last year.
These findings reflect the results of another recent study, this time from Scotiabank, which found that Canadian shoppers will spend an average of $891 this year on holiday-related purchases, up from $884 last year.
The return to consumer spending is seen as one of the biggest indicators that the economy is on its way to recovery.
