The total value of online shopping in South Korea hit a record high in May, government data showed pn July 3, in the latest sign that a growing number of people are using computers and mobile devices to buy things ranging from clothes to electronic goods.

Total online transactions reached 11.26 trillion won ($9.6 billion) in May, up 19.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the preliminary data compiled by Statistics Korea.

The reading was the highest since January 2001, when the statistics office started collecting data on online shopping.

In May, sales of electronic goods and computers jumped 22.6 percent on-year to 1.76 trillion won, the value of clothes sold rose 12.4 percent to 1.3 trillion won, while online sales of food and beverages surged 29 percent to 1.09 trillion won.

Purchases made through smartphones, tablets and other mobile gadgets soared 25.9 percent on-year to a record 7.14 trillion won, accounting for 63.4 percent of all online sales in May.

By Ram Garikipati and newswires (ram@heraldcorp.com)