Adobe Predicts Big Spike in Online Holiday Sales

RAPAPORT... E-commerce spending in the US is set to break all previous records for the holidays, topping $200 billion for the first time, according to the Adobe Digital Economy Index.Sales will rise 10% year on year to $207 billion over the November-to-December period, Adobe predicted in its annual holiday shopping forecast Wednesday. However, the major shopping days are losing prominence in the US as online commerce becomes more commonplace. While retailers will still offer discounts, they will happen earlier and be smaller. Digital sales for Cyber Week, which comprises Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday, will rise only 5% year on year to $36 billion - 17% of the entire holiday season's spending. Sales on Cyber Monday will increase 4% to $11.3 billion, Adobe projected. It will be the biggest shopping day of the season - as well as of the entire year, the company pointed out. Outlay on Black Friday is forecast to climb 5% year on year to $9.5 billion, followed by Thanksgiving, which will yield $5.4 billion, a 6% rise. All three major shopping days are growing less than the season overall, Adobe observed.Consumers will spend an average of 12 hours shopping online for the holidays this year, Adobe predicted. During the "golden hours" of Cyber Monday, which are the most popular time for making purchases, buyers will spend nearly $3 billion online, 50% more than a typical day in August 2021. Between 8 and 9 p.m. Pacific time on Cyber Monday, the peak hour for spending, consumers will shell out over $12 million per minute.Online purchasing will also gain traction thanks to a new "buy now, pay later" method, which enables shoppers to spend more without putting down the cash immediately. Global e-commerce spending for the holidays is anticipated to grow 11% to about $910 billion. That increase would push 2021's total online purchases to more than $4 trillion for the first time, Adobe added.Image: A woman shopping online. (Shutterstock)