Recession? Not in online shopping

Salary cuts, job losses and damp economic conditions have not bogged down online shoppers. Online shopping activity in India jumped 42% between October and December 2008 as compared with July-September 2008, according to a survey by Visa, a debit- and credit-card issuer.

The experience seems to have satisfied many online shoppers. “The trend to shop online looks set to continue with 81% of respondents stating they were likely to shop online again in the next 12 months,” the survey, released on Thursday, said.  The average Indian online shopper bought goods worth $3,442 or about Rs1.67 lakh through the internet, ranking third in the Asia-Pacific region.

Only Singapore and Hong Kong saw higher spending on online shopping, says the survey. Uttam Nayak, country manager, South Asia, Visa, said: “Our survey shows that online shopping appears to be resilient in the uncertain economy.  As consumers are expected to keep a close eye on their finances, the ability to browse through a wide range of retail offering to compare prices and seek cheaper buys on the internet seems to be leading budget-conscious consumers to shop online.”

A large slice of the online shopping pie came  from travel, of which airline ticketing was the biggest contributer. People also preferred to make accommodation bookings online. As Nayak summed it: “From securing cost-saving internet deals to making accommodation reservations, armchair consumers are tuned to the convenience of shopping for travel services online.”

Apart from travel, purchases of apparels and shoes have been done through websites, Visa said. All of these are not necessarily domestic purchases, as cross-border transactions by Indians too increased during the period October-December 2008.
Though it is not clear in which area the international transactions were made, the average amount spent by Indian shoppers on international purchases was $350 or Rs 17,000.