A recent survey by the Retail Council of Canada shows that Atlantic Canadians plan to spend more on holiday shopping this year than any other region in the country, however businesses in the capital city’s downtown are seeing a slight downturn.

As the cost-of-living and inflation continues to climb, people have been cutting costs in their daily life to make ends meet. Some businesses say that they have seen a little less traffic this holiday season, but people are still coming out, especially during the tax-free weekend this Saturday and Sunday past.

Dana Biernacki of Elaine’s Books says its been a bit of a down year, not just during the Christmas season.

She says even tourists during the summer were not spending the same money as previous years.

Kate Morrissey with Pinpoint Clothing and Gifts says people are making an effort to support local, even with rising costs.

In the days leading up to the tax-free event, they saw lots of people browsing and scoping out items they would like to snag during the sale.