Online Holiday Sales Climb 13% to Nearly $31 Billion

Online retailing was the shining star of 2010's holiday season, with sales rising 13% over 2009 to a record $30.81 billion. Top growth categories included computer hardware (up 23%), books and magazines (up 22%) and consumer electronics (up 21%). Even Mother Nature seemed to be on e-tailers' side, sending a blizzard up the Eastern Seaboard on December 26 that created a final post-Christmas flurry of Web shopping.