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Cyber Monday spending expected to hit £650 million in UK alone

But it will be tough to beat the huge online sales seen on Black Friday

Lizzie Dearden
Monday 01 December 2014 10:47 GMT
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Cyber Monday could be the busiest online shopping day of the year
Cyber Monday could be the busiest online shopping day of the year

Consumers are expected to spend a phenomenal £650 million today - or £7,500 every second - as Cyber Monday follows a record-breaking Black Friday.

Shoppers quite literally fought over the best deals three days ago but today looks to be a more sedate affair as bargain hunters stay inside to buy online.

The event, which started in the US, coincides with what was already the UK’s biggest date for internet sales, which consistently peak on the first Monday in December following the last payday before Christmas and a weekend spent browsing in the shops before ordering at home.

Black Friday saw at least £600 million reportedly spent online as retailers including Curry’s and Argos had to introduce online queuing to cope with the surge for special offers on their websites.

Technology deals peaked on Friday and the focus is set to shift to fashion, with retailers continuing the sales push.

Consumers will spend £649.6 million today, IMRG Experian predicts, amounting to £451,000 a minute in a 26 per cent increase on last year.

Sage Pay estimates that online retailers will take more than £600 million as website visits hit 125 million, peaking at noon. Its own figures show that the total amount spent by UK consumers on Cyber Monday grew 15 per cent year-on-year in 2013.

Shoppers wrestled over a television at an Asda superstore in Wembley on Friday but today's battles will be online

Amazon.co.uk is planning to release hundreds of limited “lightning deals” which offer discounts for a specific period, with new offers coming online every 10 minutes.

Last year's Cyber Monday was the site’s busiest day of sales ever, with more than 4.1 million items ordered at a rate of around 47 per second, with sales peaking at 9.22pm, but a spokesperson said Friday’s success could be hard to beat.

“Cyber Monday has been the biggest day of the year for internet retailers but the incredible success of Black Friday means that it will have to be a huge day for that to be the case this year,” she added.

“We are ready for whatever the day brings with thousands of members of the Amazon team across the UK prepped and ready to pick, pack and deliver the millions of items that will be ordered.”

The Amazon delivery centre in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, is prepared for Cyber Monday

Sage Pay chief executive Simon Black said: “With just four weeks until Christmas, Cyber Monday is traditionally the day when consumers rush online to do their festive shopping.”

Security experts have warned consumers to be wary of cyber crime and take basic precautions as they shop as fraudsters and information criminals prepare for the rush.

Giovanni Ruberto, online security expert at Intel Security, said: “Cyber Monday is set to be the biggest online shopping day this year, and of course the bad guys know this.

"Whilst consumers are logging on from their laptop or smartphone to grab a bargain, you can bet cyber criminals will be doing all they can to trick unwitting consumers to hand over credit card information and personal details.

“Brits need to be on guard and watch out for any emails or websites that look suspicious and ensure they have at least basic security protection on their devices to ensure they're not fooled this Christmas.”

In the US, where Cyber Monday has been the biggest online shopping day since 2010, $2.5 billion (£1.6 billion) is expected to be spent.

It is one of several international shopping events created by marketing firms, including Singles Day in China.

Darren Hepworth, the global trading director of TD Direct Investing, said: “Alongside established milestones like Christmas and Thanksgiving we’re increasingly seeing a ‘battle of the retail holidays’ take place, with Singles Day, Black Friday and now Cyber Monday all vying for investor interest within what’s become a critical pre-Christmas trading period for major retailers.

“Traditionally, this holiday spike in investor activity has far-reaching consequences for retail and often proves to be an accurate bellwether for the sector’s likely commercial success in the following year."

Additional reporting by PA

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