Halloween candy sales are off to a slow start amid high chocolate prices and affordability concerns

Halloween candy sales are off to a slow start this year as U.S. consumers grapple with high living costs and eye-popping chocolate prices.

Halloween candy sales fell 6.7% in the month ending Oct. 17 compared to the same period last year, according to NielsenIQ, a market research firm. Nielsen also noted an 11.7% decline in candy sales in mid-September, erasing the preseason gains that Halloween candy enjoyed the previous two years.

Chris Costagli, a vice president and food thought leader at NielsenIQ, said high gas prices have worsened Americans’ concerns about affordability, and that’s dampening demand for Halloween treats. As of Friday, the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in the U.S. was $4.29, up nearly 40% from the prior year.

“I think what you’re seeing now is a consumer that’s spending so much additional money on fuel and housing and clothing and food,” Costagli said. “Some of the decisions they’re making about Halloween candy, it’s not necessarily because, ‘I notice it’s more expensive than last year,’ it’s, ‘I can’t afford it this year because I’ve paid so much more for so many other things. I just don’t have the financial means to buy it this year.’”

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Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/business