E-Commerce Sales Are Surging

Although frigid weather kept many Americans away from malls and stores last quarter, it didn't stop them from shopping on their laptops and smartphones.

Sales on e-commerce websites increased 3.5 percent in the first three months of the year from the previous quarter, reaching a record $80 billion worth of purchases, according to seasonally-adjusted figures released by the Commerce Department on Friday. Meanwhile, total retail sales declined 1.5 percent, the first quarterly drop in almost three years. On a year-over-year basis, online purchases soared a whopping 14.5 percent, compared with a 1.6 percent increase for total sales.