New data indicates that the volume of e-commerce transactions during the 2022 holiday season substantially rose from the prior year.
According to analysis from digital payment solutions provider ACI Worldwide, from October through December 2022, e-commerce transactions saw a 21% increase from the same period in 2021, beating estimates by 6%.
Looking specifically at Cyber Weekend (Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday), ACI data indicates the gaming sector experienced a leading 153% year-over-year increase in transaction value, and the travel sector experienced a 57% year-over-year increase.
Meanwhile, the retail sector experienced a 4% increase in year-over-year e-commerce volume over Cyber Weekend, driven by general retail, which saw a 14% increase, and sports and athletic sales, which experienced a 13% increase in transaction volume.
In addition, mobile devices saw 17% increase in transaction volume throughout the course of Cyber Weekend, with 36% of all transactions processed via mobile devices during Black Friday. Transaction volumes over smartphone devices soared by 43% on Cyber Monday in comparison to the same day in 2021.
Buy-now-pay-later payments rose by 87% year-over-year on Black Friday, with ATV increasing by 42%, or $57.
Other interesting findings include:
“Consumers upped their spending this holiday season despite increasing economic pressures,” said Basant Singh, head of merchant segment, ACI Worldwide. “While inflation accounted for much of the year-over-year rise in holiday spending, our data shows a steady uptick in transactions, with many consumers buying goods and services via mobile devices, and in many cases using digital wallets as a preferred payment method. We expect to see these trends continue in 2023.”
According to Salesforce data, online sales across Cyber Week rose 9% year-over-year to $68 billion in the U.S. and 2% YoY to $281 billion globally, breaking previous records for the five-day period. Salesforce found that 76% of Cyber Week e-commerce traffic came through mobile devices, and that BOPIS usage grew 9% globally Thursday through Sunday of Cyber Week compared to the first three weeks of November. There was also a 5% YoY increase in U.S. BNPL orders during Cyber Week