A recent global study by MasterCard on consumer trends sheds interesting light on how people’s consumption habits have changed. Here are the main findings:

Consumers are spending more on eating at restaurants or ordering food from restaurants. MasterCard estimates point to a 25% increase in restaurant spending—whether in-person or online—compared to a 14% increase in grocery store sales.

After months—or years—of travel restrictions, consumers have turned to air travel. Through August, this category showed a 16% increase compared to 2019 levels. However, an interesting trend has emerged: short- and medium-haul flights are growing faster than long-haul flights.

In the service sector, small businesses have emerged stronger after the pandemic lockdowns, growing at 1.5 to 2 times the rate of large companies: In August, spending on services provided by small and medium-sized businesses was 59% higher than in the same month of 2019, while spending on services provided by large companies grew by 34%.

You can view more details about the study here