The latest quarterly Online Retail Report from eWAY has revealed Sydneysiders are now the biggest online spenders in Australia, overtaking Melbourne by 5.7 per cent, and spending more than double the amount per transaction.
According to the report, Australians spent $4.98 billion online in the third quarter of 2015, a 15.2 per cent increase on the previous comparable period (PCP). Online retail sales for this year to quarter end are $14.3 billion, with yearly totals tipped to surpass the 2014 record of $16.6 billion.
Spending this quarter was up on the previous June quarter, which was boosted by the federal government’s $20,000 budget incentive to small businesses.
Highlights of the third quarter of 2015 include:
Sydneysiders made only one-third of the number of transactions made by Melburnians, yet they spent 5.7 per cent more in total, with an average purchase of $283 this quarter. Melbourne was previously Australia’s online shopping capital, and their quarterly average spending per transaction is $101. The national average is $162.
Regionally, residents in Morningside ($2.67 million) and Toowoomba ($2.2 million) in Queensland are the top online shoppers by total spent, while Wentworthville ($2.34 million) and Blacktown ($1.99 million) in New South Wales jumped up considerably to make it into the top 20 regional centres for total online spending.
Sales to international delivery postcodes increased 26.4 per cent pcp, as the value of the Aussie dollar continues to decline against major international currencies, making Australian goods and services cheaper to international buyers
New Zealand registered the largest number of sales paid with international credit cards at 33.3 per cent, followed by the US (12.9 per cent), UK (7.9 per cent), Singapore (2.7 per cent), China (2.7 per cent), and Canada (2.6 per cent).