Online sales of non-food products in the past year recorded their highest growth since records began, new figures have revealed.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) said that there was a surge of 17% in the level of non-food items purchased via the internet in May compared to the same month last year. This led to the category's best-ever performance excluding Christmas and New Year.

Experts said that fashion had been one of the main driving forces behind the upturn, with the sector responsible for more than half of the increase, with the highest rises since Christmas.

Nearly a fifth (18.7%) of all non-food sales now take place via the web. Analysis showed this was the second-highest figure since online records began, bettered only by November last year.

BRC officials paid tribute to the UK's fashion retailers for the increase, saying that the sector was "leading the way in developing their digital offering for discerning customers".

Director general Helen Dickinson said that the biggest increase in online clothing sales had taken place in May, meaning that the proportion of such purchases being made online had risen by several percentage points in the past 12 months.

While clothing was being lauded for its biggest numbers since the online monitor started, Ms Dickinson also said that footwear sales over the internet had recorded their second-best results due to "great websites and good online service". 

The BRC chief was quick to point out that an increase in choice of items available online had helped to boost sales, with a spin-off also being felt by the number of World Cup items being sold as the summer's soccer extravaganza approaches.

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