Online spending in the US and Canada fell by $400 million in May according to the latest figures from Forrester Research.

Total monthly online sales fell from $4.3 billion in April to $3.9 billion in May.

The number of households shopping online also fell from 15.7 million in April to 14.8 million in May.

Consumer spending online also dived with an average of $265 spent per person in May, compared with $273 in April, the report said.

The figures announced today are broadly in line with sales from last year. Online sales rose gradually form 3.4billion in May 2000 to $4.4 billion by October 2000.

In November, Forrester reported that online sales jumped to $6.4 billion before sliding back to $6.2 billion in December. In January, online sales halved. ®