Ecommerce traffic in the UK and France climbed steadily over the Christmas period, according to figures published today by the digital research firm comScore.
Using the World Metrix audience measurement service, the research team found that online shopping activity in the UK was up 38 per cent during the sixth week of the season, between December 3rd and 9th.
In France, the seventh week of the season - between December 10th and 16th - was the busiest, with traffic up 45 per cent on the base period index, which was measured between September 3rd and October 28th.
The statistics show that German ecommerce lagged behind during the same period, reaching a peak in growth of just 12 per cent in the run up to Christmas.
"The online retail season seems to have built normally in the UK and France, while Germany lagged behind this Christmas," commented Bob Ivins, executive vice president of European markets for comScore.
"The typical pattern we note in all countries, including the US, is that online retail activity peaks in mid-December as consumers have to allow time for shipping and delivery of their purchases in most categories."
In the UK, Amazon claimed the greatest share of online ecommerce traffic, with a nine per cent market share. Apple was in second, with a share of six per cent, while the Home Retail Group - which owns multi-channel retailers such as Argos and Homebase - was third-placed, ahead of supermarket chain Tesco and pure-play group Play.com.
The statistics exclude traffic from public computers such as internet cafes, as well as mobile phones and PDAs.
© Adfero Ltd
