Taiwan is the best place for Christmas shopping, topping the list of 29 destinations where consumers can get the best value for their money when buying gifts, while Brazil is the most expensive, a survey released by Hotels.com on Thursday showed.
GIFT BASKET
In a recent survey, the international online hotel booking service selected the 13 most popular products that are sold worldwide, including Apple Inc’s iPad and Mattel Inc’s Barbie’s Dreamhouse, in its Christmas shopping list. It then produced a global Christmas gift guide index by presenting the average prices of these products in 29 countries.
Taiwan was found to be the best value destination for bargain hunters for Christmas gifts this year, with a combined shopping basket of NT$43,323.91 (US$1,781.70), followed by Japan at NT$60,933.91 and Argentina at NT$61,168.
Seven of the top 10 cheapest Christmas shopping destinations are in Asia, Hotels.com said, adding that the consumer price index in Asia is lower than that in Europe and the US.
Rounding out the top 10 cheapest destinations were South Korea, Thailand, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Canada, India and Singapore.
MOST EXPENSIVE
Brazil was the country with the most expensive shopping basket at NT$140,978.65, which was more than 1.5 times the global average of NT$$86,420.02.
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