Internet Christmas shoppers are set to hit their highest level by spending £183 million in the run up to Christmas, which is predicted to be the busiest part of the year for online retailing .
The peak of the shopping frenzy is likely to be between 1 and 2pm when goods worth £14 million will be bought. During the ten week build-up to the festive season, the average spend per hour is £4 million, the Internet Media Retail Group (IMRG) predicts.
According to the research, another surge will follow between 7pm and 9pm when more than £22m will be spent.
Last year, online shopping peaked on December 12 - but millions of shoppers were frustrated when their gifts arrived late.
"The online shopping peak is pulled forward each Christmas by millions of people who rely on the internet for their key shopping items," said IMRG chief executive James Roper.
"It is interesting to note that more than a third of online shopping takes place either before or after traditional shopping hours," Mr Roper continued.
Given that 63 per cent of UK homes are now connected to broadband, it would appear that people are going online later to bash their credit cards in the pre-Christmas period.
Spending on the internet in the next four weeks is predicted to hit £7billion.
|
