UK shopaholics line up £ 7bn for X'mas, virtually

LONDON: Britons will spend a record £7bn ($13.3bn) on online purchases in the run-up to Christmas, a 40% rise on last year, a survey has predicted. E-retailing body Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG) said an average of £4m will be spent via the internet every hour across the country in the 10 weeks to December 25. The total £7bn compares to £5bn in the same period in ’05 and £3.3bn in ’04, it added.

IMRG chief executive James Roper said the online shopping boom was down to more sophisticated websites, increased consumer awareness of goods via the internet and a greater take-up of broadband connections at home.

“The Internet has become the most reliable way to shop. With real-time product availability becoming the norm at the leading e-retailers, consumers can tick off their shopping lists with certainty rather than pinning their hopes on pounding the pavements,” he said.

Clothing appeared to be the biggest growth sector but electrical goods still accounted for the lion’s share of sales, making up one-fifth of all items sold online at Christmas. The release of the survey coincided with the arrival in Britain of one of the world’s largest ships containing 45,000 tonnes of toys, books, computers, Christmas crackers, decorations and food from China.

Campaigners including the Green Party have expressed concern at the environmental impact of such long distance trade and its effect on trade and employment in developing countries.