Online sales statistics and forecasts: compilation

Forrester Research estimated that online sales from Thanksgiving weekend to Christmas will increase 42% over a year ago to $12.2 bil. The results include travel and auction sites. Jupiter Research, a division of Jupitermedia Corp., projects that online sales will be up 21% to $17 bil for the November and December period. The results exclude travel and auction sites.

From Nov. 1 through Nov. 30, online retail sales reached $5.89 bil, a 22% increase from $4.85 bil for the same period a year ago, according to BizRate.com. Total online sales - excluding travel and auctions - for the week ended Sunday was $1.26 bil, compared with a little more than $1 bil in the year-ago period, according to comScore Network's preliminary data. Still, despite its growth, online sales are expected to account for only 4.5% of annual total retail sales this year, up from 3.6% last year, according to Shop.org, an arm of the National Retail Federation. Total retail sales include business from tickets, travel, events and auctions.