The second Sunday in December is a peak shopping day for mobile shoppers. In the U.S. mobile gross merchandise volume (GMV) grew 127 percent over the same Sunday last year, generating nearly $5 million in GMV; worldwide, mobile GMV grew 165 percent generating $13 million in GMV.

“Mobile has transformed the shopping experience this holiday season. People simply prefer using a phone to shop smarter for everything from clothing, shoes and accessories to toys and sporting goods. Shopping for great deals anytime and from anywhere continues to gain momentum with consumers,” said Steve Yankovich, vice president of mobile for eBay. “With more than 30 million downloads of our suite of mobile apps globally, we continue to drive mobile innovation and delight our customers around the globe.”

In the U.S., eBay mobile GMV was up 38 percent on “Mobile Sunday” over Cyber Monday 2010. Clothing and accessories topped the list of most-sold items among U.S. shoppers buying with their phones, with the top five U.S. states by sales volume including California, Pennsylvania, Florida, Indiana, and Ohio.

eBay’s findings in the three weeks leading up to the busiest mobile shopping day of the year on eBay, clearly demonstrate that mobile phones are changing the way people shop this holiday season:

Top U.S. Categories by GMV Sales

• Clothing & Accessories
• Cars & Trucks
• Jewelry, Gems, Watches
• Sporting Goods
• Auto – Parts

Top U.S. Categories by Number of Transactions

• Clothing & Accessories
• Collectibles
• Cell Phones & Accessories
• Toys
• Sports Memorabilia

On the busiest mobile shopping day, Sunday, Dec. 12, 2010, U.S. mobile shopping peaked during the hours of 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. GMT (1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. EST), with more than 9,500 transactions per hour.

According to consulting firm Accenture, 73 percent of smartphone owners now prefer using their phone at retail for simple shopping tasks, rather than talking with a store employee.

References: Business Wire; Accenture Report on Mobile Devices and Shopping (2010)