Online holiday shopping off to solid start

The online holiday shopping season got off to a solid start, according to data released on Tuesday by ComScore Inc.

US online spending reached USD 9.7 billion in the first 20 days of the holiday season, which began in early November, ComScore said. That was up by at least 14% from the same period a year earlier, the company added.

Online retailers have entered the most important part of the year, when billions of dollars in sales are up for grabs.

In 2010, US shoppers spent almost USD 22 billion online between early November and December 10, up 12% from the same period a year earlier, ComScore data show.

In the first three weeks of this November, same-store sales generated by ChannelAdvisor's online merchant clients jumped 28% from the same period a year earlier.

ChannelAdvisor helps merchants sell more on third-party marketplaces run by e-commerce giants including Amazon.com Inc and eBay Inc.

ChannelAdvisor merchants saw same-store sales jump 65% on Amazon.com in the first three weeks of November, versus the same period of 2010.

Merchants on eBay saw a 19% increase in same-store sales during the same period, ChannelAdvisor also said.

"All channels firing," ChannelAdvisor Chief Executive Scot Wingo wrote via Twitter on Tuesday.