NEW YORK (Reuters) – More US consumers now plan to pare back their spending for the upcoming holiday season as they see little relief from a tepid economic recovery, a survey showed yesterday.

The results from the survey by consumer research firm America's Research Group suggest a tougher holiday season for retailers from Best Buy Co to Abercrombie & Fitch Co to Tiffany & Co, which generate a sizeable portion of their annual sales in the weeks between US Thanksgiving in November and Christmas on December 25.

About 20 percent of US consumers have changed their minds in the last month about how much they plan to spend on holiday shopping this year, according to Britt Beemer, president of America's Research Group.

More than 17 percent said they planned to spend less, while only 2.5 percent said they planned to spend more.

In addition, 58 percent of all respondents said they and their family were shopping less now than a year ago, up from 55 percent just a week earlier.

A Republican win in Congress earlier this month is also not changing consumer attitudes, as many do not expect a policy shift that would improve the economy or cut unemployment in the near future.

"These people will tell you next Christmas is going to be another issue, but right now it has no impact. They may feel better about the election, but it hasn't changed their life," Beemer said in an interview.

The impact of the elections and people's spending plans were among several questions posed exclusively for Reuters in a wider survey by America's Research Group. The survey polled 1,000 people from Nov. 10-15.

The National Retail Federation has forecast retail sales will rise 2.3 percent during the holiday season this year in November and December, compared with a 1.1 percent increase in 2009 and a 3.4 percent decline in 2008.