Click-happy online shoppers in Llandrindod Wells have earned the town the title of Wales’ ‘Black Friday and Cyber Monday Hotspot’ for the second year running.

The town beat Llandudno, Swansea, Cardiff and Newport which made up the rest of Wales’ top five.

The ratings are based on analysis of the number of parcels received into the Royal Mail system between November 20 and 28, weighted against number of delivery points in the area.

Llandrindod also same third in the UK, after the English and Scottish hotspots of East London and Kirkwall.

Despite Black Friday and Cyber Monday meaning big business for online retailers, there are fears that small local shops are suffering as more customers chose to shop on-screen.

Llandrindod Wells Mayor and East/West County Councillor Jon Williams said: “It’s sad for local businesses, especially the smaller ones. We have some great businesses in town and you can get anything.

“It’s a shame that people are choosing to shop on line rather than come out and support their local businesses. The shops have all made a real effort this year, as in previous years, with everything they are stocking.”

Cllr Williams also hoped local businesses with an online presence were reaping the benefits of the Black Friday rush, and said there was still plenty of time to pop down to Middleton Street for those last-minute gifts. He added: “I hope the figures don’t show that people are doing 100 per cent of their shopping online.

“Most businesses these days are dabbling in online selling so a lot of trade will be heading out of Llandrindod as well.

“I hope the locals will still come out and support the local businesses.”

Sue Green, chairman of the Chamber of Trade, added: “We have got to get the message out to support our local businesses. But the bottom line is that in rural areas like ours it’s a godsend to have things online.

“Wherever possible we encourage people to get out and buy local.

“We have lots of nice shops down on Middleton Street, including a few new shops, who all work very hard.

“To be honest we need a combination of the two.

“People still like to go into a shop and touch and see a product, but when they know what they want they see the benefit of having it delivered.

“It also keeps our Post Offices in business.”

Black Friday, originally a one day promotional sales event, is now widely regarded as the start of the Christmas shopping season in the UK.

In the run up, a third of retail businesses in Britain said they felt optimistic about Black Friday this year.

The Royal Mail’s top 10 list looks at all parcels accepted from online retailers and ecommerce businesses for delivery via the tracked 24 and 48 hour services.

During the Christmas period in 2016, Royal Mail handled a staggering 138 million packages.