Voices
Holiday expenses useful in understanding social trends of '80s generation
By Zeng Ying (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-02-23 10:32
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On the first working day after the Chinese Spring Festival, many Internet users posted their festival expenses in Web communities and forums.
The Internet users, mostly born in the 1980s, provided detailed information on consumption that may be indicative of social trends.
It was reported that they spent a considerable amount of money on gifts or hongbao to their parents and elder relatives and that proves that young people, who are mostly single children, are not as selfish or egotistical as some had assumed.
The rising spending on their parents also shows that the generation values family love and the importance of paying back.
This is a very commendable development. Some media say that the Spring Festival is becoming a holiday for young people to give thanks to parents. Of course, it's also possible that some parents have expectations that are too high and have made the filial duty a burden on their children.
The Internet users have shown that travel costs were the biggest single expense during the holiday. And they didn't include costs spent on getting air, train or bus tickets.
For many people, transportation during the Spring Festival was still quite an obstacle between them and family.
In addition, expenses for meals, gifts and money given to children as Spring Festival gifts were expensive.
Some may have spent their savings during the holiday, if they had any savings at all. Many spent an equivalent of two to three months' incomes on the holiday, which was roughly the annual bonus for them. Some say the holiday back home would burn such a big hole in their pockets that they would have to further delay their plan to buy a home.
Probably, this explains why some would rather spend a lonely Lunar New Year far away from their hometown.
The lists of expenses are not just about numbers. They show people's aspirations as well as the joys and pains of everyday life.
(Excerpts of a commentary that first appeared in Beijing News on Feb 22.)
