A Federal Express truck on delivery is pictured in downtown Los Angeles, California October 29, 2014. REUTERS/Mike Blake

(Reuters) - FedEx Corp would hire about 55,000 workers and increase hours for some existing employees for the holiday season as the U.S. package delivery company prepares to cater to an expected jump in shipments due to online shopping boom.

The company’s seasonal hiring is about 10 percent more than last year when it added about 50,000 positions.

Shoppers are spending more on holiday gifting, according to industry surveys, buoyed by a strong economy and labor market that is churning out more jobs every month.

FedEx, has been investing more to handle the growing number of deliveries for online purchases and other packages.

“The rise in demand for e-commerce goes beyond peak. It’s a year-round phenomenon...,” said Raj Subramaniam, chief marketing and communications officer.

The company said on Wednesday it would expand its U.S. ground-shipping operations to six or seven days per week for the shopping season and extend the six-day week throughout its U.S. network all-year round.