Always thought female shoppers were the ones who doled out money on the latest fashion and trends? Well, then you certainly need a reality check, for it’s the guys who are the worst spenders, says a survey.

Debt collection company Dun & Bradstreet has revealed that young men are increasingly finding themselves in trouble with debt.

According to its survey, which looked at the latest September quarter debt statistics, disclosed that males in particular are getting under huge piles of debt.

"It is concerning that young Australians are demonstrating signs of (financial) stress, particularly as we approach Christmas, a traditional boom time for spending,'''' News.com.au quoted Dun & Bradstreet chief executive Christine Christian as saying.

She also said that over fifty percent of all debtors were under 34 years of age.

She added: "The current economic climate is making it increasingly difficult for consumers to manage their budgets, and as we approach Christmas it is even more tempting to spend without thinking about the consequences.

"To avoid an increase in over-indebtedness in the New Year, it is absolutely critical that consumers pay close attention to their finances.''''

For the past two years, the company has observed that men are consistently building up debt at a faster pace than women.

Standing at over 1300 dollars, the average debt value for men was 28 per cent higher than their female counterparts.

But, despite such big value to their credit, men have been reducing the size of their debt during the past few months.

The study also revealed that men decreased their average debt by 1.2 per cent, which was still small compared with women who cut their average debt size by more than three times that level, or 3.8 per cent.