  |
 |
|
Research and retrieval of news articles by: SPECIAL NOTE TO ALL VISITORS: | ||
 |
|
SANTA, BE GOOD TO MESource: Internet.comPosted on September 7, 2000 Global online sales for the upcoming holiday season, spurred by "explosive" growth in Net access, are predicted to reach $19.5 billion in 2000, says a new industry report, an 85 percent increase over last year's estimates. The forecast report from research and consulting company Gartner Group Inc. said that last year's online holiday sales reached an estimated $10.5 billion worldwide. "Explosive Internet access growth over the last two years, particularly in regions beyond North America, means that many Internet users are now familiar enough with the medium to make online purchases," said Astrid Van Dorst, senior analyst for Gartner's e-Business Services. "We've witnessed strong demand for Western goods by the affluent in Asia and support by governments, retail banks, card companies and national portals to 'Webify' their countries." The good news for American e-tailers is that North America will continue to account for more than half of online holiday sales this year, Gartner said, growing at a rate of about 70 percent year over year. Other regions are gaining market share, too. Sales in Europe and the Asia/Pacific regions are projected to grow 96 and 91 percent, respectively, while sales in Japan are predicted to grow by more than 180 percent. Not only are shoppers going to spend more, but also they are going to start earlier, the report says. During the holiday season last year, many Internet retailers were not prepared for the large number of shoppers, so some Web sites had difficulties fulfilling orders in time for the holidays. Gartner analysts said Internet users and Internet retailers both learned from lessons last year to better prepare for this holiday season. "In an effort to avoid stock outages, and long delivery times, consumers are likely to shop earlier
as they shop more in 2000," said Robert Labatt, principal analyst for Gartner's e-Business
Services. "Retailers have learned their lesson, too: They have spent the year implementing real
time inventory systems and are motivating consumers to shop earlier in an effort to deliver the
best shopping experience possible."
E-Commerce Alerts are issued by Bennett Gold LLP, Chartered Professional Accountants as situations develop. Bookmark this site and check back often. Our e-mail address is: info@BennettGold.ca In accordance with United States Code, Title 17, Section 107 and Article 10 of The Berne Convention on Literary and Artistic Works, the news clippings on this web site are made available without profit for research and educational purposes. |
|
ALERT  WebTrust Is Your Best Defense Against Privacy Breaches. Get WebTrust Working For Your Site. |