UK shoppers spent GBP3.63 billion ($4.6 billion) online over the Black Friday/Cyber Monday (November 29-December 2) period, a 5.2% increase year-on-year, according to data from Adobe Analytics published on Tuesday.

UK retailers were looking to the discount weekend to kick-start trading in the run-up to Christmas after official data showed sales fell by much more than expected in October.

Industry data for November, but excluding Black Friday, was also lacklustre, suggesting shoppers under pressure from rising energy bills were holding out for better deals.

The Adobe data showed UK consumers spent GBP1.12 billion online, up 7.2%, on Black Friday and GBP926 million online, up 5.1%, on Cyber Monday.

Separate data from Barclays, also published on Tuesday, showed Black Friday retail transactions from both online and physical trading increased 9.5% in comparison to Black Friday 2023.

U.S. shoppers made roughly $10.8 billion in purchases online on Black Friday, Adobe data published on Saturday showed.