December 25, 2024 | 12:10pm
MANILA, Philippines — The number of Filipino adults expecting a happy Christmas has plunged to 65% from 73% last year, while those anticipating a sad celebration rose to 10%, according to the latest Social Weather Stations survey.
The survey, conducted from December 12-18, 2024, also showed that at least a quarter, or 26%, of Filipino adults expect their Christmas to be neither happy nor sad.
While current expectations about the holiday remain above the pandemic-low of 50% recorded in 2020, they are well below the pre-pandemic level of 79% in 2019 and the record-high 82% set in 2002, according to SWS.
Regional data shows stark differences in how people anticipate their Christmas in 2024. Mindanao maintains the highest optimism at 73%, followed by the Visayas at 71%. Balance Luzon and Metro Manila report markedly lower figures at 59% and 58%, respectively.
Metro Manila recorded the steepest regional decline, dropping 14 points from 72% in 2023. Balance Luzon fell by 11 points from 70%, while the Visayas decreased by 7 points from 78%. Mindanao showed the most stability, declining only by three percentage points from 74%.
Education levels also showed varying degrees of optimism for Christmas, with all groups recording declines. College graduates maintained the highest optimism at 70%, though down from 75% in 2023. Those with senior high school education showed the sharpest drop, falling 13 points from 80% to 67%.
Despite the lower Christmas expectations, Filipinos expressed strong gratitude for other aspects of their lives, according to the SWS survey.
When asked what they were most thankful for, 47% cited good health, while family and being alive were mentioned by 25% and 24% of respondents, respectively.
Respondents were asked the question: “As Christmas and the end of the year approaches, may I know what one or two things are you (sic) most thankful for in your life right now?”
Other sources of gratitude included employment and religious faith (both at 7%), having regular meals (6%), the ability to cope with daily hardships (5%), and general blessings (4%). Peace and safety, happiness, and prosperity each garnered 3% of responses.
The nationwide survey interviewed 2,160 adults face-to-face, carrying a ±2% error margin for national percentages. Regional sampling included 1,080 respondents from Balance Luzon and 360 each from Metro Manila, the Visayas, and Mindanao.
Disasters and rising prices. The drop in Christmas optimism comes at the end of a year marked by severe weather events that had sent thousands of Filipinos repeatedly scrambling for shelter and calling for relief.
From late October to mid-November 2024, six consecutive storms pounded the Philippines in less than a month — a clustering that officials called “unprecedented” even for the disaster-prone country.
The impact was extensive. About 200,000 individuals were displaced across six regions, with many forced to flee their homes multiple times in just one month. The first two major storms during this period—Severe Tropical Storm Kristine (international name: Trami) and Super Typhoon Leon (Kong-Rey)—affected over nine million people.
The storms also disrupted food supply chains. Government data shows inflation rose to 2.5% in November, with food inflation accelerating to 3.4% from October’s 2.9%. The Philippine Statistics Authority noted that destructive typhoons drove the sharp spike in vegetable prices, which went from a 9.2% decline in October to a 5.9% increase in November.
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