June should have been a bumper month for worldwide shipping firms as online retailers report a record month for internet sales.

For the second month in succession online sales in the UK were up by a fifth in June year-on-year, according to the latest IMRG/Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index.

The report shows that the online retail market saw sales of £4.4 billion in June, up by 20 per cent on the same month last year.

Good weather, the World Cup and Wimbledon are seen as the main factors behind the increase in consumer activity.

The results, coupled with May's 22 per cent year-on-year growth suggest online retailers are beginning to bounce back from recession.

Indeed, over £26 billion has been spent online in the first six months of 2010, 15 per cent higher than the same period in 2009.

"Among the current economic uncertainty, the good news is that retail spending over the summer as a whole is forecast to see a £1.4 billion uplift on last year," commented Kelkoo UK managing director Bruce Fair.