Projected Easter spending this year, almost on par with a record $18.4 billion in 2017, but still the second-highest level on record, according to a survey by the National Retail Federation: 18.2 billion

Average spent per person: $152

Amount consumers will spend on food (purchased by 87 percent of shoppers): $5.7 billion

Amount spent on candy: $2.6 billion

Amount on flowers: $1.3 billion

Source: NRF.

Amount that Wall Street banks handed out in bonuses to their New York City-based employees for 2017 performance, up 17 percent over 2016, according to figures from the New York State Comptroller: $31.4 billion

Number of times larger the total bonus pool for 176,900 Wall Street employees was than the combined annual earnings of all 884,000 U.S. full-time minimum-wage workers, according to the Institute for Policy Studies: 2.5

Source: Institute for Policy Studies.

Amount that U.S. consumers racked up in new credit card debt during 2017, pushing existing outstanding balances past $1 trillion for the first time ever, according to WalletHub's Credit Card Debt study, based on Federal Reserve data: $92.2 billion

Despite Federal Reserve data, percentage of Americans who think they'll have less debt at the end of the year: 92

Percentage who think travel is worth getting into debt for: 35

Percentage who don't remember why they got into it: 13

Source: WalletHub.

Estimated percentage of Americans who report skipping a recommended medical test or treatment because of cost, according to a poll from the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago and the West Health Institute: 40

Percentage who say they didn't go to a doctor when they were sick or injured in the last year because of cost: 44

Source: NORC at the University of Chicago.

Percentage of senior managers who said it's common for an applicant with a promising resume to not live up to expectations when interviewed, according to a survey by Robert Half: 64

On average, number of resumes managers review per job opening: 40

Number or minutes they spend looking at each one: 12

Source: Robert Half.

Percentage of singles who have gone out on an official first date, according to a survey by Match.com: 44

Percentage of singles who say being asked out two to three days in advance is appropriate first date behavior: 54

Percentage who approve of being asked out the day of: 27

Source: Match.com.

Percentage of Americans who are most likely to describe their idea of the "perfect" body as being athletic, according to a survey conducted by Ipsos on behalf of RiverMend Health: 79

Percentage of Americans who would be willing to give up something they love if it meant they could achieve their perfect body overnight: 75

Percentage who would say goodbye to deep-fried foods: 45

Percentage who would give up candy/sweets: 43

Percentage who would forgo alcohol: 41

Percentage who would give up sex: 10

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of bosses and supervisors surveyed who support their employees when they take time out to enjoy themselves while traveling for business, according to a survey by National Car Rental: 92

Percentage of business travelers who report successfully managing their personal lives while on business travel: 86

Percentage who consider themselves "business travel pros": 83

Percentage who say they know how to make the most out of life while traveling for business: 84

Source: National Car Rental.

Percentage of Americans who said regret was the leading feeling after an impulsive shopping session, according to a survey by finder.com:: 44

Percentage who felt indifference: 32

Percentage who felt as though they didn't have enough funds for something they actually needed (such as rent, school fees, loan repayments): 19

Percentage who said it caused fighting with a spouse or family members: 10

Source: finder.com.

Percentage of Americans who had already filed income tax returns as early as Feb. 26, and even high among millennials (59 percent), according to eBay's Tax Refund Retail Study: 57

Percentage of respondents who expressed excitement about filing taxes because they are getting money back: 48

Percentage who plan to spend at least part of their tax refund this year, while 23 percent plan to save it: 78

Source: eBay.

Idle Thought

"If tyranny and oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy." -- James Madison, fourth U.S. president

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)

Percentage of workers who dated at work who ended up getting married, according to a CareerBuilder survey: 31

Percentage of workers who had an affair with a colleague where one person involved was married at the time: 24

Percentage of workers who have left a job because a romantic relationship with someone at work went sour: 6

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Percentage of full-time employees in the U.S. who do not receive benefits, such as health insurance, a retirement savings plan or paid vacation, from their employers, according to a survey by Clutch: 25

Ranks of health insurance, paid vacation time, overtime pay and retirement funding on the list of the most valuable benefits to employees: 1, 2, 3, 4

Source: Clutch.

Percentage of older baby boomers (ages 65 to 75) who are not looking to leave all of their money behind and just want to live comfortably in retirement, according a PNC survey: 86

Source: PNC Financial Services Group.

Of the companies surveyed this year, percentage that were pure-play online retailers, according to a study by the National Retail Federation and Forrester: 32

Percentage that were multichannel retailers, including traditional bricks-and-mortar retailers that also sell online: 57

Percentage of store-based retailers who expect a net increase in the number of bricks-and-mortar stores they operate by the end of 2018 compared with 2017: 43

Percentage who expect a net reduction: 16

Percentage of retailers who are proactively working on their real estate assets by opening some type of pop-up store: 24

Source: NRF.

Percentage of millennial bosses who said online messaging is their most common way to communicate with their direct reports, according to a new Korn Ferry survey: 55

Percentage who communicate by email: 28

Percentage who said their favored way to communicate is in person: 14

Percentage who do it by phone: 3

Source: Korn Ferry International.

Number of U.S. adults who have had a negative experience lending a personal credit card to someone they know, according to a new CreditCards.com study: 36 million

Ranks of overspending, not getting paid back and not getting the card back (stating their card either wasn't returned or was lost or stolen): 1, 2, 3

Percentage of current or former credit card holders who admit to letting someone else use their personal card: 49

Source: CreditCards.com.

Ranks of "being present for my kids" and "being a good listener and giving good advice" on the list of qualities that make a good parent, according to research by Farm Rich: 1, 2

Source: Farm Rich.

Percentage of workers surveyed by OfficeTeam who said their companies have a scent-free policy: 19

When asked how they dealt with smells in the office, percentage of workers who let it go and suffered in silence: 46

Percentage who confronted the person: 17

Percentage who asked their manager or HR to intervene: 15

Source: OfficeTeam.

Percentage of investors who moved money out of stock-related accounts during the January-February market correction as a direct response to the decline, according to a new Bankrate.com report: 6

Percentage who contributed more to stock investments: 15

Source: Bankrate.com.

An American's odds of being intentionally assaulted with a firearm, according to the National Safety Council's compilation of unintentional death and injury data for 98 years: 1 in 285

Odds of being accidentally shot: 1 in 8,305

Source: National Safety Council.

Idle Thought

"The first symptom of love in a young man is timidity; in a girl, boldness." -- Victor Hugo

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)

Percentage of workers who do not think everyone has an equal shot of living the American Dream, according to a survey by CareerBuilder: 60

When asked what are the top factors that are keeping people from achieving the American Dream, ranks of the cost of education, cycles of poverty, wage gaps, inequality (among women, minorities, etc.) and access to education: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Percentage of millennial-owned businesses that have a mobile app, compared to 42 percent of small businesses owned by Generation X and 13 percent owned by baby boomers, according to a survey by Clutch: 55

Percentage of small businesses that build mobile apps to attract new customers: 28

Percentage that do it to gain a competitive advantage: 18

Percentage that do it to increase sales: 17

Source: Clutch.

Estimated corporate losses due to unproductive workers during March Madness, according to WalletHub: $4 billion

Percentage of HR professionals who say they don't have policies addressing office pools: 81

Source: WalletHub.

Percentage of American single women who think their dates earn "bonus points" if they offer to pay for the date, according to a survey by personalized dating service It's Just Lunch: 58

Percentage who insist on picking up the bill themselves: 1

Percentage who intend to pay for the next date: 8

Source: It's Just Lunch/American Way.

In the United States, odds of dying from any unintentional cause -- up from 1 in 30 in 2004, according to National Safety Council: 1 in 25

Every 10 minutes, number of people who are killed: 3

Number who are seriously injured: 847

Source: National Safety Council.

Of the 65 percent of taxpayers expecting a refund, percentage who say they will put it into savings, according to survey released today by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights and Analytics: 49

Percentage who will pay down debt: 35

Percentage who will spend this year's refunds on everyday expenses: 22

Percentage who will use the money for a vacation: 12

Source: NRF.

Percentage of CFOs who said it was challenging for their company to find skilled candidates for professional-level positions today, according to a Robert Half survey: 65

To combat this problem, percentage of executives who are now considering entry-level applicants for roles that historically weren't open to them: 51

Source: Robert Half.

On average, percentage of their salary that adults direct toward their retirement savings, according to a survey conducted by McLaughlin and Associates on behalf of PenFed: 7.6

When asked what they would do if given $5,000, percentage of respondents said they would put it toward retirement: 23

Percentage who would put the money in savings: 63

Source: McLaughlin and Associates.

Percentage of millennials (ages 22 to 35) who would rather work in an active workspace -- one which supports movement, collaboration and social interactions -- than in a traditional "cube," according to a study conducted by VARIDESK: 75

Of the respondents who work in an active workspace, percentage who are satisfied with the space their employer provides: 87

Percentage of respondents without an active workspace who are satisfied with their space: 57

Of those who still work from a traditional cubicle, percentage who said they would be less likely to look for a new job if their employer invested in an active workspace: 57

Source: VARIDESK.

Percentage of American women who say Social Security will be their primary source of retirement income, according to a survey from the Nationwide Retirement Institute of adults ages 50 or older who are retired or plan to retire in the next 10 years: 62

Percentage of women who say life is, or is expected to be, better in retirement than before retirement (down from 31 percent last year): 25

Percentage who say that life in retirement is, or is expected to be, worse: 26

Source: Nationwide.

Idle Thought

"It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change." -- Charles Darwin

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)