Last month the sales of clothing online were up by 14 per cent in the UK, according to new statistics released by IMRG Capgemini.

The entire e-commerce market saw sales growth of 12 per cent in July, indicating that clothing is ahead of the curve in terms of consumers' spending.

Analysts also recorded a 42 per cent rise in purchases made from portable devices last month when compared with the same period in 2014, showing just how significant the influence of smartphones and tablets is becoming.

On average, people were spending £78 in each session of safe shopping online, which shows that basket values are actually stabilising after several months of decline. The rise of mobile shopping has made people shop more regularly but spend less each time.

Retailers also found that July was a good month for converting casual site visitors into paying customers, perhaps suggesting that the wet weather that was experienced nationally in July made people spend more time using the internet to shop than would otherwise have been the case.

IMRG spokesperson Tina Spooner sad that in the first six months of 2015 it had been difficult to predict how the retail market would behave, but she added that things have settled down into more established trends in recent weeks.

Spooner also said that the poor performance seen earlier in the year may lead to retailers going to increasingly desperate lengths to convince people to part with their cash. And with the festive shopping season looming after the summer has ended, more sales and discounts are likely.

This is good for consumers, of course, especially those who choose to shop online and find the best deals available from across a range of retail outlets.