comScore: Cyber Monday retail spending hits record $1.46 billion

Reston, Va. -- Spending on Cyber Monday reached $1.46 billion, up 17% versus a year ago, making it the heaviest online spending day in history, according to comScore.



Retail e-commerce spending for the first 26 days of the November-December 2012 holiday season rose to $16.4 billion, up 16% versus the corresponding days last year.



Nearly half of dollars spent online at U.S. websites originated from work computers (47.1%), down slightly from last year. Buying from home comprised the majority of the remaining share (47.2%) while buying at U.S. websites from international locations accounted for 5.7% of sales.



“Despite some news reports suggesting that Cyber Monday might be declining in importance, the day has once again set an online spending record at nearly $1.5 billion,” said comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni. “However, it is also clear that the holiday promotional period has begun even earlier this year, with strong online sales occurring on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday. Now, we shall see the extent to which continuing and attractive retailer promotions are able to boost sales for the remainder of the week.”