Shoppers are already beginning to look a lot like Scrooges this holiday season

It won't take a Scrooge to spoil this holiday season. Americans are already doing a very good job of it themselves, putting the brakes on gift spending -- no matter what offers retailers dangle before them.

An ING Direct (ING) survey of adults found that only 54 percent plan to spend $300 or more on gifts this holiday season, down 10 percentage points from last year. The number planning to spend less than $300 is holding steady. Another 11 percent -- compared with seven percent last year -- said they won't spend a dime.