The Christmas rush hits a peak for Atlanta-based shipping giant UPS today.

The world’s largest shipping carrier expects to move 22 million packages through its system Monday. For the entire holiday season, UPS says it will deliver roughly 400 million packages worldwide -- that amount would be up slightly from 2008.

As of noon, UPS spokeswoman Rebecca Treacy-Lenda says the day has gone as predicted:

"We are certainly out and about and very busy today making sure that all of our customers' packages arrive on time".

Projections of both UPS and rival FedEx are closely watched by industry analysts to gauge consumer spending trends and the economy’s general health.

FedEx last Monday reported its busiest shipping day ever, with more than 14 million packages delivered -- 2 million more than last year. And UPS hired 50,000 seasonal workers to help handle the holiday volume.

The holiday shipping traffic is welcome news to both carriers, with both making cuts to its operations in the past year to weather the recession.

Tags: economy, Atlanta, UPS, recession, Christmas, FedEx, holiday season, package delivery, United States