(Reuters) -Retail sales in the U.S. increased 3% during the expansion of the holiday shopping season from October 11 to December 24, a report from Mastercard Inc said on Saturday, driven by a change driven by the pandemic towards online shopping.
US e-commerce sales increased 49% in the holiday shopping season, according to the Mastercard SpendingPulse report, highlighting the role of the COVID-19 pandemic in transforming customers’ buying habits.
Vacation e-commerce sales accounted for 19.7% of total retail sales this year, the data showed, noting that options such as buying online and withdrawing from the store, non-contact technologies were critical for retailers.
The holiday shopping season may account for the majority of annual sales by certain retailers, but the health crisis has prompted several retailers, including Walmart Inc and Target Corp, facing capacity restrictions in certain stores, to launch their promotions. Christmas early.
E-commerce giant Amazon.com Inc has also postponed its annual summer promotional event to October, marking a longer-than-ever holiday season for retailers who lost sales for several weeks during the blocks earlier this year.
“This was a healthier holiday season than many anticipated,” Mastercard senior adviser Steve Sadove told Reuters in an interview.
Sadove believes that the digital trend will continue to grow in 2021, with smaller retailers also adopting new technologies to offer customers new ways of shopping.
People who spend more time at home due to extended home work and remote learning policies fueled the demand for home decor and renovation products, with retail sales in the furniture and home furniture category increasing 16.2%, from according to the report.
Electronics and household appliances also increased 6% in the period, as the reduction in spending on food, travel and leisure encouraged consumers to make other purchases.
Sales of clothing and jewelry fell in general, but e-commerce sales increased by 15.7% and 44.6%.
The SpendingPulse report tracks spending by combining sales activity on Mastercard’s payment network with cash estimates and other forms of payment, but excludes car sales.
Reporting by Praveen Paramasivam, Nivedita Balu and Anirudh Saligrama in Bengaluru; Editing by Pravin Char and Alexandra Hudson