The rising cost of food and fuel is adding to the pinch, curbing the spending power of millions and delaying a meaningful recovery in consumer spending for the forthcoming Christmas in the US, MSNBC reported.

Many poor have decided not to buy gifts in Christmas. In contrast, sales at luxury stores like Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom Inc. have soared all year and their November sales -- Saks' same-store sales rose 9.3 percent -- show holiday sales are off to a strong starts.

The wealthy don't pull back much on luxury even when markets are rough because their "spending money" is not tied up in the stock market, said Jonathan Bergman, a vice president at Palisades Hudson Financial Group.

Millionaires, who account for nearly half of U.S. luxury sales, have enough cash to keep up their spending habits even if their income droops for a year.

(China.org.cn December 12, 2011)

据MSNBC报道，在美国，食物、燃料价格的上涨使穷人更加苦恼，上百万人的消费力下降，而且面对即将到来的圣诞节，似乎没有恢复的可能性。

许多穷人已经决定不买圣诞节的礼物。而相反，奢侈品商店，如萨克斯第五大道及诺德斯特龙的销量却全年飘红，萨克斯11月份的销量还增长了9.3%，显示出节日消费的强势劲头。

帕利塞兹胡森金融集团的副总裁乔纳森·伯格曼称，富人在市场情况不好的时候，也不会减少奢侈品的消费，因为他们的“零花钱”没有陷在股市里。

占美国奢侈品销售近一半的客户都是百万富翁，即使他们的收入一年内都在下降，他们还是有足够的现金来保持他们的消费习惯。