Canadian e-commerce continues to perform well, enjoying increases for the fourth consecutive year, according to new figures from Statistics Canada.
Online sales rose by 38.4% year on year in 2005, with the growth six times more than that in overall offline retail sales in Canada.
Breaking the figure down, online sales by private firms increased by 37.2% to CAD36.3 billion, while public sector sales were up by 55.4% reaching CAD2.9 billion.
The research also found that 82% of all private sector firms used the internet in 2005, with 38% having a website.
Looking closer to home, eMarketer revealed earlier this year that Germany had the largest e-commerce market in Western Europe, with shoppers expected to spend over $108 billion in 2008 (see Germany Largest e-Commerce Country In Europe).
Online shopping also enjoyed a strong performance over this year’s Christmas season, with the Goldman Sachs, Nielsen//NetRatings and Harris Interactive Holiday eSpending Report showing that US online spend reached $30.1 billion, up by 30% year on year (see US E-Commerce Passes $30 Million For 2005 Holiday Season).
E-commerce in the UK saw similar growth over the ten week run-up to Christmas 2006, with shoppers spending £5 billion online, compared with £3.33 billion during the same period in 2004 (see UK Online Shopping Up By 50% Over Christmas).
According to online competitive intelligence monitor, Hitwise, visits to retail websites were up significantly in the week after Christmas, seeing a rise of 16% year on year for the week ending 31st December 2005.
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