Adjusted Q3 2010 retail e-commerce sales improved about 14% from Q3 2009, according to [pdf] new data from the US Census Bureau.
Adjusted E-commerce Sales Rise 14% Annually
Adjusted for seasonal variation but not for price changes, US retail e-commerce sales in Q3 2010 totaled $41.5 billion, an increase of 14% from $36.5 billion in Q3 2009 and 4% from $39.9 billion in Q2 2010. They accounted for 4% of total adjusted Q3 2010 retail spending of $978.7 billion.
Adjusted E-commerce Sales Show Steady Growth
Adjusted for seasonal variation, retail e-commerce sales have shown a steady quarter-over-quarter growth pattern for the past year. In Q2 2010, adjusted retail e-commerce sales grew 3.2% from $38.7 billion to $39.9 billion. This was preceded by 1.5% growth from $38.1 billion in Q1 2010, which represented 4.4% growth from $36.5 billion.
Year-over-year growth was also steady. Q2 2010 retail e-commerce sales grew 14.7%, preceded by quarters with year-over-growth rates of 14.3% and 14.6%, respectively.
Unadjusted E-commerce Sales Show Varied Results
Removing seasonal adjustments, retail e-commerce sales have followed a dramatically different path in the past year quarter-over-quarter but similar results year-over-year. Unadjusted Q3 2010 e-commerce sales totaled $38.8 billion, a 3.9% increase from $37.4 billion the previous quarter and 14.1% from the prior year.
Tracking retail e-commerce sales quarter-over-quarter in the past year, Q2 2010 unadjusted retail e-commerce sales totaled $37.4 billion, a 1.9% quarterly increase and 14.1% annual increase. In Q1 2010, unadjusted retail e-commerce sales were $36.7 billion, an 18.8% quarterly drop but 14.1 annual hike. However, Q4 2009 unadjusted retail e-commerce sales of $45.2 billion represented 32.8% quarterly and 15% annual growth from Q3 2009, when unadjusted retail e-commerce sales totaled $34 billion, up 3.9% quarterly and 1.6% annually.
comScore: Q3 Online Retail Spending Grows 9% Annually
comScore estimates show US online retail spending reached $32.1 billion during Q3 2010, up 9% from $29.5 billion in Q3 2009. This growth rate represented the fourth consecutive quarter of positive year-over-year growth following a year of flat or negative growth rates.
About the Data: Retail e-commerce sales are estimated from the same sample used for the Monthly Retail Trade Survey (MRTS) to estimate preliminary and final US retail sales.
