1 pound in 6 now spent online

The amount of money spent in the UK on internet shopping last year was more than 50 percent higher than the year before, the UK e-commerce industry body IMRG has announced.

According to the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index, released on Thursday, the run-up to Christmas 2007 was an "all time high" for online shopping in the UK, with £15.2bn spent online from October to December. The overall figure for 2007 was £46.6bn, up 54 percent on the £30.2bn spent online in 2006.

According to Anthoula Madden, Capgemini's vice president for UK consumer products and retail, the figure prove that online growth continues to be "robust and sustainable" in the UK.