Last month consumers in the UK spent an average of 18 per cent more during each session of safe shopping online than they did during March of 2016, according to new figures from IMRG.

Report spokesperson, Justin Opie, revealed that much of this growth is being driven by the fact that Brits are happy to spend more via smartphones and tablets than at any point in the past.

Average basket values are an important indicator of the health of the e-commerce sector, with mobiles once again helping to drive the industry forwards while desktop and laptop use continues to decline.

Opie said that retailers were racing to improve their mobile offerings, creating optimised sites that are designed to provide safe shopping online across a range of devices.

While in the past it was not always easy to use a smartphone to make purchases, much has changed and consumers are now far more confident when it comes to mobile shopping.

Analysts were also pleased to see sales rise during March in spite of the fact that Easter fell later in the year than usual, meaning the sales boost brought about by this event was held off until April.

Mild weather helped to improve sales of home and gardening items, with people willing to splash out on a variety of outdoor products earlier this year than in 2016. This means that seasonal swings can impact some areas of the market more than others.

It seems certain that much of the growth that the UK’s e-commerce sector will experience over the rest of 2017 will be generated thanks to mobile devices. Consumer concerns over privacy and security on portable platforms remain, but retailers seem to be doing a good job of allaying many of the fears that once restricted the impact of m-commerce.