New figures from the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index show that UK shoppers spent £5.46 billion online in December – an equivalent of £88.93 for every person in the UK – 17% up on December 2008. Sales rose by 3.8% compared to November 2009, demonstrating typical growth for the month of December.

The peak week for online Christmas shopping was the second week in December. This was one week later than in 2008, as a combination of November postal strikes; shoppers holding out for bargains; increased confidence in delivery services; and Christmas falling on a Friday delayed the annual spending spree.

James Roper, Chief Executive of IMRG comments: "The latest Index figures prove yet again that online shopping thrives on adversity. The sector managed to deliver strong double-digit growth in 2009 despite the economy being in recession, aggressive high street competition, extreme weather and even postal strikes in the run-up to Christmas.

“2010 looks set to produce another year of strong results for e-retail, with demand expected to remain high as consumers habitually look online for best buys, and a pipeline of significant improvements emerge, including wider product range availability, even better websites and a greater choice of convenient and more reliable delivery options."

Jon Parry, Principal Retail Consultant at Capgemini, said: “Once again, consumers have turned to the internet to do their Christmas shopping, with 17% growth year on year this December. An interesting shift during this festive period is the strength of the month on month performance for multi-channel retailers (up 13%) versus their pure-play competitors (down 8%). This shows both the high value consumers place on a multi channel proposition, particularly when it comes to gift returns, and the trust advantage our high street brands have if they can get their online proposition right.

“A key trend highlighted by our index analysis is the 25% drop in conversion rates from 2008 to 2009. This is a clear reflection of the increased traffic using the internet as a source of product information and recreation, accelerated by the increase in retail content on social network sites such as facebook. This highlights the significant opportunity on the table for retailers to enhance their online customer experience.”