All-time high 81 percent of respondents say it's better to give than to receive

MANILA - A record number of Filipinos in over a decade are expecting a happy celebration of Christmas this year, the Social Weather Stations (SWS) said in a survey released Saturday.

About 3 in 4 Filipinos, the highest in 14 years, are looking forward to a merry celebration of Christmas, showed the survey conducted from December 8 to 16, before the onslaught of deadly storms that struck in central and southern Philippines.

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Out of 1,200 respondents, 77 percent said they expect a happy Christmas, while 5 percent expect it to be sad and 18 percent are neither happy nor sad, SWS said in a statement.

It is the highest holiday optimism SWS recorded since 2003, when 77 percent also said they were expecting a happy Christmas.

The latest reading was up 4 points from the 73-percent expectation of a happy Christmas in 2016, but lower by 5 points compared to the all-time high of 82 percent in 2002, SWS said.

Across regions, expectations of a happy Christmas this year is highest in Mindanao at 84 percent, followed by 80 percent in the Visayas and 75 percent in Balance Luzon. In Metro Manila, only 69 percent said they expect a happy Christmas, the survey said.

'AGUINALDOS '

The same survey showed 81 percent of respondents saying it is "better to give" rather than receive Christmas gifts, the highest-recorded figure since SWS started asking the question in 2006, the pollster said.

The percentage was up by 6 points from 75 percent in 2016.

The sense of giving was 75 percent in 2006, when the question was first asked, and again in 2014. It slightly improved to 77 percent in 2015 before slightly declining to 75 percent in 2016, added SWS.

The percentages of those who said it is "better to give" Christmas gifts are higher in Metro Manila (85 percent), Balance Luzon (84 percent) and Visayas (83 percent) than in Mindanao (69 percent).

The survey sampling error margins are ±3 points for national percentages and ±6 points each for Balance Luzon, Metro Manila, the Visayas and Mindanao.