According to a Deloitte survey Texans plan to spend more money on the holidays. The Dallas Morning News reports that Texans plan to spend considerably more than the nation as a whole this holiday season. The survey also says Texas residents are more optimistic than last year about the economy improving.

The annual survey found that fears about the recession are slowly subsiding. Fifty-five percent of Texans say they expect the economy to improve next year. Last year, only 27 percent were optimistic.

Texans plan to spend $1,380 on holiday gifts and entertaining this. That's more than the $899 average per household last year, and its 21 percent higher than the national average of $1,145.

Non-gift spending is up significantly across the four categories measured by the survey: home/holiday furnishings, socializing away from home, entertaining at home and non-gift clothing.

Texans told Deloitte they will spend less on gifts but more on entertaining and decorating.

The average number of gifts Texans plan to buy will decline to 20 from 25 in 2008. Their gift spending is expected to be down 7 percent to $464, from $498 last year. But their spending for entertaining, decorating and other holiday cheer is projected to rise to $916 from $401 last year.

Economic concerns will cause seven out of ten Texans to shop differently. Three out of four say they will buy sale items. More than 50 percent say they will buy lower-price items or use more coupons.

Job losses and pay cuts will cause 45 percent of Texans to spend less. That number could show a later arrival of the recession's impact in Texas, as those concerns more than doubled from last year.

The Deloitte survey was conducted between September 24 and October 2. Its results are based on 517 respondents in Texas and 10,878 nationwide. The margin of error was plus or minus 1 percentage point.