US online retail spending rose by 9% to $32.1bn in the third quarter of 2010, compared to the same period a year ago, representing fourth consecutive quarter of positive year-over-year growth following a year of flat or negative growth rates, according to data released by comScore.
The report said that books and magazines (excluding digital downloads), computers/peripherals/PDAs, computer software (excluding PC games) and consumer electronics were the top-performing online product categories.
The top 25 online retailers accounted for 70% of dollars spent online, up 5.5 percentage points compared to the same period a year ago.
Online ‘pureplay’ retailers accounted for 58% of dollars spent online, compared to 42% among multichannel retailers.
comScore said that 41% of online retail transactions included free shipping, down marginally from last year.
comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni said retail e-commerce growth in the third quarter remained solid at 9%, a fairly positive indicator for the upcoming holiday season.
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"However, we continue to preach caution due to the continuation of high unemployment, which is creating very divergent spending patterns between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots’," Fulgoni said.
