US Ecommerce Firms Cashing In, Says comScore

Despite the general lull in retail spending, online sales were up 35% against the third quarter of 2001. Year to date sales totalled $52.5 billion, 41% higher than for the same period last year and almost equal to the $53.1 billion in spending posted in all of 2001.

“While the third quarter opened sluggishly, sales in August and September climbed strongly, reflecting continued strength in consumer spending,” said Michelle David Adams, comScore Networks vice president.

US Online Consumer Sales*
	Sales ($ million)	% Change vs
	Q3 2002	Q3 2001	Q2 2002
Travel	8,034	40	3
Non-Travel	9,858	30	1
Total	17,892	35	2
* figures exclude auctions and large corporate purchases
Source: comScore Networks, October 2002

Analysis Travel tickets remain the most popular internet purchases with bookings accounting for almost $10 billion or 45% of all online sales. However, year on year quarterly sales growth has slipped from 87% in the first quarter to 40% in the third quarter. The most lucrative non-travel sector is computer hardware which raised $2.6 billion in sales in the last three months.

E-commerce accounts for little more than 1% of US retail sales (see US Ecommerce Sales Exceed $10 Million In Q2) so there is plenty of scope for expansion. However, the growth rate in North America is lower than in Europe (see Online Shopping Thriving Despite Economic Uncertainty) and spending per buyer has fallen because new online purchasers do not yet have total faith in the medium.

“While the third quarter brought relatively positive results, all attention is now focused on the make-it-or-break-it fourth quarter,” said Adams. “There’s clearly a mandate for retailers to be creative and aggressive in designing promotions that increase consumer confidence and persuade shoppers to spend more, earler.”

US Online Consumer Sales – Year On Year Growth Comparisons*
	2002 vs 2001 Change (%)
	Q1	Q2	Q3
Travel	87	59	40
Non-Travel	30	28	30
Total	48	41	35
* figures exclude auctions and large corporate purchases
Source: comScore Networks, October 2002