U.S. shoppers spent more online during this year’s holiday shopping season, a report by Mastercard Inc. showed, with e-commerce sales hitting a record high, Reuters reported. The holiday shopping season is a crucial period for retailers and can account for up to 40 percent of annual sales. But this year, Thanksgiving, which traditionally starts the U.S. holiday shopping period, was on Nov. 28, nearly a week later than last year, leaving retailers with six fewer days to drive sales between Thanksgiving and Christmas. E-commerce sales this year made up 14.6 percent of total retail and rose 18.8 percent from the 2018 period, according to Mastercard’s data tracking retail sales from Nov. 1 through Christmas Eve. Overall holiday retail sales, excluding vehicles, rose 3.4 percent.
