US online shopping jumps 17%

US online spending in the first three months of this year surged with a little help from shoppers using tablet computers to buy clothing and other items, comScore reported last week, AFP writes.

E-commerce sales of $44.28 billion in the quarter were 17% higher than in the same period last year, according to the industry tracker.

“The first quarter of this year was especially strong for retail e-commerce, as we returned to year-over-year growth rates in the high teens - numbers we haven't seen since 2007,”says comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni.

Nearly half (48.8%) of all e-commerce transactions during the quarter included free shipping - the highest incident of this perk outside the fourth quarter, Home Textiles Today reports.

“Only Q4 2011 (51.8%) and Q4 2010 (49.3%) have been higher overall,” comScore reported. The most popular online shopping categories for the period included digital content and subscriptions, computer software, consumer electronics, jewellery, watches and event tickets.

The use of tablets for e-commerce is also on the rise, with 38% of tablet owners using their devices to make purchases. Apparel was the most frequently purchased category in this shopping segment.

“While the economic recovery continues to be painfully slow, the channel shift to e-commerce appears to be accelerating,” BizReport quotes Fulgoni as saying.

“This presents opportunities but also challenges for brick-and-mortar retailers if they can't hold onto their offline market share in the digital world. E-commerce has reached critical mass in several product categories, and it will be important to monitor these sales trends by category in order to correctly gauge the impact e-commerce is having on overall retailer performance.”