Web sales fever hits as soon as the wrapping paper is off

Boxing day was the busiest day in terms of traffic for online retailers over Christmas as shoppers saved the little money they had for the sales.

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According to internet search data company Hitwise, traffic to retail sites leapt 22 per cent between 25 December and 26 December 2008. However, Boxing Day volumes were down 4.9 per cent compared to the same day in 2007.

The rise in traffic this year was driven by consumers' hunt for post-Christmas bargains, with variants of 'Boxing Day sale' being one of the more popular search terms of the day and no frills supermarket Aldi seeing a 78 per cent rise in traffic between this Boxing Day and Boxing Day 2007.

eBay was the most popular retail site in terms of Boxing Day visits, with a 10.5 per cent share of UK traffic - suggesting a lot of online activity centred around selling unwanted gifts.

Clothing and accessories also proved popular on Boxing Day, with a 22 per cent traffic growth year on year, while groceries and alcohol notched up nearly 19 per cent.