That was the average in May for people earning $90K or more, and the figure represents an increase of 33% from May 2009, when folks in that same income bracket spent an average of $109 per day.
This is all according to a recent Gallup poll that explains the rise in spending:
It could be that many upper-income consumers are experiencing “frugality fatigue.” That is, they are simply tired of cutting back and want to go back to spending — maybe not as freely as they did prior to the recession, but at higher levels than they did last year, when frugality was commonplace. They may also be spending more freely because as recently as a month ago, many economic observers were talking about the financial crisis’ being over and a sharp economic upturn taking place.
Low- and middle-income people aren’t quite as likely to be suffering from “frugality fatigue” or “shopping withdrawal.” People earning less than $90K a year are spending far less in an average day: $59. And they’re spending about the same as they did a year ago, as you can see in this graph:
So if you’re managing to spend less than $59 a day, you’re below average—and that’s something you should be proud of.