AUGUST TRADE NEWS Bad weather blamed for shopping centre delay Chester council  not supporting retailers New rules 'won't help save retail centre' Irish shoppers look abroad for bargains British consumers spend more on beauty products Yorkshire town gets behind plastic bag reduction scheme Rising obesity prompts calls for VAT rule changes eBay restructures fee scheme to make fixed-priced sales cheaper Online sales boom despite slowdown Music retailer goes out of business Matalan named and shamed for how it treats wholesalers BCC slams higher parking charges proposals Booming wholesaler moves to new warehouse Market traders told to only 'shout quietly' London's retailers show growth despite gloom Counterfeit goods dealer sentenced to prison UK's smallest town protests supermarket plan More retailers and wholesalers going out of business Online retail sector predicted to expand rapidly Henley retailers protest development plans Retail sales continue to slow Tiffany appeals US court's eBay ruling Report criticises electricity suppliers' treatment of small businesses MK retailers protest Tesco expansion plan Yorkshire retailers protest supermarket move Manchester wholesaler shut down over fraud worries Businesses welcome plans to reduce red tape Rate hold accepted by small businesses Internet sales put pressure on the high street Huge counterfeit goods haul in Somerset Irish entrepreneur online retail plans Wholesaler sector set to struggle Staycations could help British retailers Retailers 'gloomy' about economic outlook Retailers report footfall continues to decline as consumers cut back Hidden door reveals huge counterfeiting operation in Manchester shop No recession for the UK this year East London wholesaler goes into receivership London mayor reveals plans to support small retailers Toy retailers defy gloom Retailers urged to embrace online sales Trade News Archive August 08 July 08 June 08 May 08 April 08 March 08 February 08 January 08 Subscribe to our newsletter   Go to The Wholesaler UK Directory 13th August 2008 Online retail sector predicted to expand rapidly While retailers continue to report slowing sales on the high street, a new report has shown that online markets are booming. Analysis from website uSwitch.com showed that retail sales in the UK dipped 3.9 per cent in June. However, it added that the economic slowdown did not seem to be impacting retailers that have already embraced online sales channels. In fact, online shopping sales increased to a record £26.5 billion in first half of 2008. What's more, the report suggested that online sales would account for 19 per cent of all retail sales in 2008. This figure is expected to increase to 44 per cent by 2020. The website added: "The fastest growing online retail sector is clothes, accessories and shoes. The number of customers buying these items over the internet has increased from 20 per cent in 2006 to 36 per cent in 2008. "Books, however, are the most popular online purchase on the global world wide web - hardly surprising with prices for a bestselling paperback now 52 per cent cheaper online than on the high street." Recently, credit checking agency Equifax stressed that independent retailers should embrace online channels to survive the predicted economic downturn.   (c) 2008 Adfero Ltd. Sponsor of August Trade News Tilting TV Brackets   Comment on this news story To comment on any story please click on the above link, put the story title in the subject line and please provide your name, trading style ie. retailer or wholesaler and the town where you trade.