Online retail spending up 15 percent

Online retail spending is on the rise.

According to comScore Inc., online spending reached $41.9 billion in the third quarter, an increase of 15 percent from last year. This is the 12th consecutive quarter of positive year-to-year growth and the eighth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth.

“The (growth rate) provided confirmation of the strength in the e-commerce sector, despite a few negative headwinds in the macroeconomic environment during the quarter,” said comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni. “Such performance offers some optimism as we approach the holiday season, especially given recent improvements in consumer sentiment. There appears to be strong enough footing to support a very healthy online holiday shopping season.”

The survey also shows that despite a slow-moving economic recovery, there has been marked improvement in consumer sentiment in the past quarter, although many consumers still remain challenged by economic conditions. Forty-eight percent of U.S. consumers now rate the economy as “poor,” an 8 percent point improvement versus the prior quarter and the most pronounced improvement since early 2009.