Rome - Some 28 per cent of Italians are too scared to enter shops lest they be tempted to spend money amid the global financial crisis, a survey published Friday suggests.

The financial crisis has hit Italy with a recession and led to uncertainty in the job market.

Many of those polled for the survey by the Vicenza-based Demos & Pi agency also say they've adopted various belt-tightening measures.

Some 43 per cent said they are buying fewer clothes, while 35 per cent have cut back on eating out at restaurants and pizzerias. Around 30 per cent say they trying to save money by reducing purchases of food for their households.

The survey, which included 1,321 people, covers the period of November 26 through December 1.

Some 15.5 per cent said they consider their family to be in a low- income bracket. That compares with 6.7 per cent of respondents who said the same in a similar study in May 2006.

Around 13 per cent said they have lost their job over the last year.

Some 41 per cent of respondents said the current economic crisis has forced them to use less electricity - costs in Italy are among the highest in the European Union - and to seek out "alternative" sources of power. (dpa)