Online spending grows by 2% despite cost of living squeeze

Online retail therapy is still booming despite the cost of living crisis putting pressure on Australian wallets.

Even with inflation leading to more expensive groceries, interest rates remaining high and wages staying relatively stagnant, Australians are choosing to pop items into their online shopping baskets.

Australia Post’s latest report revealed online spending grew by 2% in the last year as posties rushed to deliver the high number of parcels bought on the internet.

In the last quarter, there was a 4.4% jump in online purchases compared to the same period last year.

The recent splurge is attributed to events like the end-of-financial year sales luring consumers with bargains.

Fashion, apparel, health, beauty and recreational goods were the main things people bought.

More than 5.7 million Australian households made an online purchase every month in the last quarter.

Tasmanians, Northern Territorians and Queenslanders spent the most time shopping online during this period.

Despite Australians shopping online frequently, they are buying less.

The data revealed the number of items in the online basket have decreased by 2.6% year on year.

Australia Post’s post and parcel general manager Gary Starr says shoppers are likely opting for more frequent but less expensive purchases.

“We know shoppers are taking advantage of sales, managing the size of their baskets and using online shopping to help compare costs,” he said.

The online shopping spree also showed Australians are trying to stay on budget by hunting out the best deals on the internet, Starr added.

The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics data showed people were tightening their budgets, with overall household spending only rising by 0.1% in the past year.

Health services and food were the main contributors to the rise in spending.

This article was first published by AAP.

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