Online shopping is becoming more and more popular for a number of reasons; prices are often lower online, you don’t haveto queue upin busy shops and you can buy almostany product imaginablewith justa few clicks of your mouse.
Computer trends are oftenmale-dominatedbut this year women are expected to do more shopping on the internet than men. It seems women are now more attracted to the convenience of online shopping than they used to be.
Average spending online this Christmas by women will rise to ￡240 (3360 Yuan) compared to the slightly lower average of ￡233 for men, while the average spend per person onthe high streetis only ￡197. 70% of internet users, male and female, are now buying their Christmas gifts online.
In the past a lot of people werereluctantto shop online. Many were worried about the security ofentering their card detailson the internet and thereliabilityof the internet but as shopping online has become morewidespread, these worries have begun to disappear. 45% ofinternet usersstill do have security worries but it hasn’t slowed down theever-increasingnumbers of online shoppers.
Onevictimof the online shoppingboomis the UK high street. Christmastradingcan represent up to 60% ofturnoverfor some stores. Many companies are concerned that not enough shoppers are coming through their doors inthe run-upto Christmas. As a result there are lots ofspecial offersin the shops.
Most shops traditionally have sales after Christmas but this year the bargains have come early in an attemptto lureconsumers to spend. Bad news for the high street has become good news for the bank balances of UK shoppers this Christmas!
to browse around 浏览 in the comfort of their own home
在家里舒舒服服的(…)
to queue up 排队 any product imaginable可以想象到的产品
a few clicks of your mouse点击你的鼠标
male-dominated 由男性主宰的 the high street 主要商业街reluctant 勉强的 entering their card details
填写银行卡资料
reliability 可靠性widespread 流行广泛的 internet users 上网者 ever-increasing 不断增长的 victim 牺牲品 boom 繁荣 trading 交易
turnover 营业额
special offers 特价
the run-up 即将到来之际
to lure 诱惑
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