54% of UK Christmas spending is happening online

Nielsen//NetRatings reports 50% of UK online shoppers will not sell the unwanted Christmas gifts on shopping or classifieds sites. 35% don't know what to do with them, and 15% are positive on going to online flea markets. 72% of online shoppers in the UK have already, or are likely to, buy Christmas presents online. 24% have already, or are likely to, buy their Christmas groceries online. Online shoppers will spend an average of 445 pounds on Christmas presents in 2005, with 242 pounds spent online, therefore, online spend now accounts for over half (54%) of total Christmas present spending in the UK. Women are more likely to turn to the web for Christmas purchasing than men: 80% will do so for presents and 33% for groceries compared to 66% and 18% respectively for men