The weaker Australian dollar is prompting Australian shoppers to rein in their spending on the websites of foreign retailers.
New data from National Australia Bank shows there was a pickup in online sales for local retailers during September, while those for offshore stores fell.
Sales for domestic retailers rose 1.8 per cent in the month after being flat in August, while international sales contracted by 1.1 per cent.
"As the Australian dollar falls, domestic online fashion aggregators are outperforming their international competitors," said Tony Davis, a director of data analytics firm Quantium.
The dollar is currently hovering around 70 US cents, sharply lower than the 90 US cents it was at in September 2014 when Australians were spending up big with foreign retailers thanks to the exchange rate making their goods relatively cheaper.
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The NAB report noted that the weaker Australian dollar not only makes overseas goods relatively more expensive, but it also pushes up the postage rates for goods being shipped Down Under.
During September, overall online sales were 1.1 per cent higher month-on-month.
Electronic games and toys enjoyed significant growth, while websites offering "daily deals" emerged from the doldrums to post its second-highest month-on-month growth.
