Whether you spend most of your money on fashion or technology may depend partly on where you live in the world and the culture you were brought up in. The New York Times has an interactive graphic here that shows how people in different countries spend their discretionary income. The chart shows what portion of this income goes to clothing, electronics, recreation, household goods and alcohol. The Times has a corresponding article to go with the chart.
If you live in Greece, Italy or Egypt, you'll probably choose textiles over technology. Greeks spend almost 13 times more money on clothing as they do on electronics.
"Italians and other Europeans love fashion; the greatest designs in the world come from those regions," said Todd D. Slater, a retail analyst for Lazard Capital Markets in New York.
If you live in Australia or Taiwan, you might be more tempted by a new laptop computer or flat-screen television. Australians spend only 1.4 times more cash on clothes than they do on consumer electronics.
In the U.S. we outspend pretty much everyone in every category. In Japan they spend the most on recreation - not electronics as many might have guessed. The way items were categorized in the Times' chart may have a lot to do with how the results turned out. Recreation is a pretty broad category and there are likely items that could cross-over into other categories. Today we see technology weaving its way into recreation, household goods and fashion. This makes it somewhat difficult to ascertain an accurate category breakdown especially in a country like Japan where technology is so pervavise.
