Of those who did buy, average holiday spending dropped to $247.

His hope is that investors can gain as the market becomes surprised by levels of holiday spending.

Q. How do you think holiday spending will pan out this year?

The gift cards now make up $17 billion, or about 8 percent, of holiday retail spending, according to federation estimates.

Coupled with recently falling gas prices, the increased income could lead to higher holiday spending.

Some companies that pay them early in the new year inform employees in advance so they can plan their holiday spending.

For now, holiday spending suggests that it is still fairly robust.

They also could explain why this year's decline in stock prices may put a significant damper on holiday spending.

It hit the height of its sales campaign in December, considered a bad time to sell cars when people are focused on holiday spending.

Currently 36% of their holiday spending goes to the domestic market.