RESTON, Va.-Online spending for the first 32 days of the of the November-December holiday shopping season (Nov 1.-Dec. 2) totaled $21.4 billion, 14 percent ahead of last year, according to e-commerce research firm comScore.
Online spending posted healthy gains on key days of the shopping season as well. Spending on Cyber Monday, Nov. 26, set a record at $1.47 billion, up 17 percent from last year’s Cyber Monday. Online sales on Thanksgiving jumped 32 percent to $633 million, and Black Friday brought a gain of 28 percent to $1.04 billion. Cyber Week, Nov. 26-30, resulted in sales of $5.46 billion, up 11 percent over last year.
Gian Fulgoni, comScore’s chairman, said Cyber Week saw a softening of the growth rate during its back half. “It is likely that, to some extent, holiday spending was pulled forward to the Thanksgiving-Black Friday period, given the heightened promotional activity around that time,” Fulgoni said.
comScore’s research also showed that online spending growth is being driven by the increase in the number of online shoppers (128.7 million, up 9 percent from last year. In addition, average spending per shopper registered at $165.90, up 5 percent from last year.