E-commerce in the United States continues to grow and grow. On-line spending was up 19% in April compared to the same month last year, according to credit card analyst group Mastercard Advisors. This follows 16% e-commerce growth in March. It’s the sixth consecutive month of double-digit growth in on-line spending. Amongst the individual categories, spending on footwear was up 20% and womenswear 15%. On-line sales of electronics were up 9% despite overall retail sales of electronics, including bricks-and-mortar stores, being down nearly 2% year over year.
Internet Retailer magazine's view of petrol prices
One of the reasons being given for the continuing rapid growth in e-commerce in the United States is rising fuel prices. Petrol might still be a lot cheaper in the United States than it is in Europe or New Zealand, but having risen a dollar in the past year to US$4 per gallon (NZ$1.35 per litre), prices have risen enough to become a significant factor pushing consumers to purchase more and more on-line. A survey commissioned by Internet Retailer magazine suggests that 28% of consumers say they are shopping on-line more because of rising fuel costs.
Either way, this continuing shift in shopping by American consumers to on-line channels reinforces the importance of having a high-quality on-line presence as part of a U.S. sales strategy. World Wide Access makes it easy for New Zealand product suppliers to reach consumers in the United States through major American on-line shopping channels including top shopping comparison engines, product search sites and marketplaces in addition to conventional e-commerce webstores.
MasterCard and ComScore are reporting American second quarter online spending was up 14% year on year, the seventh consecutive quarter of e-commerce growth.
According to ComScore the number of online shoppers increased 16% and U.S. consumers spent $37.5 billion with online retailers in the second quarter, up 13.6% from $33.0 billion during the same period in 2010. These figures do not include travel, auto, auction or large corporate purchases.