12 July 2006
Britons are spending more money online than their European counterparts, as total European spending hits £70 billion, according to figures from Forrester research.
On average, UK residents are spending £1,200 on goods over the Internet, higher than citizens of any other European country.
The figures show that the 100 million Internet shoppers in Europe are spending an average of £700 per person.
Jaap Favier, research director consumer markets at Forrester, stated that online sales are "building up every year", particularly in the countries which were among the first to introduce Internet shopping, such as Britain.
Mr Favier described Britain as a "more optimistic economy" than other European countries.
"Quite a few people, not even very wealthy people ... are happy to pay a little bit more for convenience, for example buying from Tesco online instead of going down to the shop," he said.
Mr Favier attributed much of the Internet spending to books, music and holidays, while clothing and electronics are also popular items.
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