Online retail spending recovers to pre-Sept. 11 levels, reports comScore
Online retail sales last week returned to their pre-Sept. 11 level, creating a base from which holiday sales can grow, ComScore Networks Inc., a web-tracking service, reported today.
ComScore reports that essential product categories such as apparel and health & beauty suffered a drop of 27% during the week of the attacks, but their sales quickly rebounded to levels even higher than those seen before Sept. 11. By contrast, while sales of discretionary categories such as consumer electronics, books and event tickets declined a comparable 24% during the week of the attacks, these categories returned to normal sales levels only in the middle of October.
“We’re encouraged that in the most recent week, online spending on hard goods returned to normal levels,” says Daniel E. Hess, vice president of comScore. “But it will be important to continue to monitor the extent to which consumers begin to increase their spending as we approach the seasonally high months of November and December.”
Here’s what comScore reports for all online spending (including travel and event tickets), travel only and other spending not including travel, in millions. The percentage changes in all cases are from pre-attack levels.
Pre 9/11 average week:
Total online spending: $999
Travel: $411
All other: $589
Week ending:
9/16
Total online spending: $693 (-31%)
Travel: $222 (-46%)
All other: $471 (-20%)
9/23
Total online spending: $785 (-21%)
Travel: $230 (-44%)
All other: $554 (-6%)
9/30
Total online spending: $914 (-9%)
Travel: $365 (-11%)
All other: $549 (-7%)
10/7
Total online spending: $908 (-9%)
Travel: $365 (-11%)
All other: $543 (-8%)
10/14
Total online spending: $896 (-10%)
Travel: $352 (-14%)
All other: $543 (-8%)
10/21
Total online spending: $929 (-7%)
Travel: $341 (-17%)
All other: $588 (0%)
Note: comScore changed its measuring period at the end of September from Saturday through Friday to Monday through Sunday.
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