Online sales expected to grow

Date: 29th June 2010

UK retailers could be among those to be encouraged to increase their online activity following a new report.

According to the latest PayPal Online Retail Report, carried out by Experian, the online retail sector is expected to grow by more than 36 per cent in the next 18 months.

At the same time, in-store sales are expected to increase by just one per cent.

The report also revealed that online sales will double their market share to more than £30 billion by 2011.

Carl Scheible, managing director of PayPal UK, said: "Online retail is booming even in the current economic uncertainty because shoppers turn to the internet when they are trying to be thrifty.

"Two-thirds of online shoppers are now convinced their money goes further online compared to less than half who believed it last year, an increase of 8.5 million people. The success of online retail really is the silver lining in the economic crisis."

The report also claimed that one in every ten pounds will be spent online in less than two years.