New York – U.S. retail e-commerce
forecast sales have been revised upward, reflecting double-digit growth during
2010, according to research firm eMarketer.
Sales — excluding travel, digital downloads and event
tickets — will grow by 12.7 percent in 2010 to $152.1 billion, after two years
of subpar growth.
This follows the U.S. Census Bureau’s release showing
that online sales in Q4 2009 grew by 14.6 percent from a year earlier, the
biggest gain in eight quarters.
In 2014, online sales will reach $233.9 billion, with
a growth rate of 8.2 percent due to maturation of the online sales channel, the
research firm estimates.
“Online sales growth outperforms total retail growth
because shoppers are moving more of their purchases from stores to the Web to
take advantage of lower prices, convenience and selection,” said Jeffrey Grau,
eMarketer senior analyst and author of the report, U.S. Retail E-Commerce
Forecast: Room to Grow.
“This year, 162 million people in the U.S. will
research products online, and much of this research will lead to in-store
purchases,” said Grau.
More than 82 percent of online researchers, or 133
million people, will be online buyers. The percent of online buyers will rise as
young Internet users, predisposed to e-commerce, replace older users, the survey
indicated.
