Retailers saw modest gains in total sales this past holiday shopping season, including the online sector. According to the National Retail Federation, total holiday sales saw an increase of 1.1%, an unexpected but welcomed surprise after 2008’s -3.4% contraction. According to ComScore, online sales rose 4% this past holiday season, when compared to holiday 2008 — certainly an improvement over last year’s -5.7% decline.

Total holiday sales reached nearly $450 billion this holiday season (including November and December) and beat pre-holiday projections of a -1% decline. Of this $450 billion dollars, E-commerce represented $29.1 billion. Regarding this overall increase, NRF Chief Economist Rosalind Wells said, “…with an eye on managing inventory and maintaining lower price points, retailers did a tremendous job of planning for the holiday season.” However, she does not expect the momentum to continue given the double-digit unemployment numbers.

In E-commerce, Black Friday saw an increase in consumers shopping from their homes to avoid the crowded malls. This trend also points to the fact that consumers are becoming increasingly confident with finding deals and promotions online. The sector also received a helping hand from mother nature herself, as severe snowstorms forced many shoppers in the US to stay indoors. The industry’s best performers included: apparel, sporting goods, books and music, and health and personal care. All of these categories earned modest to considerable gains over last year.

Retailers also took the opportunity this past holiday season to increase their social network presences to further reach out to customers. Facebook and Twitter in particular aided retailers with distributing promotions and coupons to savvy consumers. eMarketer, the Internet market research firm, is optimistic in forecasting that online sales will continue to experience accelerated growth, even amidst an ongoing recession.

Via National Retail Federation and eMarketer