The Asia-Pacific region accounted for more than one-third of global B2C E-Commerce sales in 2014, and is forecasted to retain, and even strengthen its dominant position through 2018, with the proportional share of China rising during the period. The growth of E-Commerce in the region has the potential to spill over to other countries worldwide, due to the increase of cross-border online shopping as a market trend. Cross-border online purchases in early 2015 were most frequent in Australia, Singapore and New Zealand, where over half of online shoppers purchased items from abroad. The most important product categories purchased online from abroad varied among countries in the Asia-Pacific region, but clothing and apparel represented a significant share of international purchases in several markets, including South Korea and Japan, with the USA and China shining as main cross-border online shopping destinations. In other countries, such as Indonesia, cross-border online shopping remains underdeveloped with less than 10% of online shoppers participating.
Factors influencing the decision of online shoppers to not to purchase items from abroad in Asia-Pacific included among others, the expectation of higher costs, as well as longer delivery times. Speed of delivery was a major concern among online shoppers in several countries, with over half of all online shoppers in China and Japan viewing it as a key factor in online purchases. At the same time, slow delivery was a main reason for dissatisfaction for over 20% of online shoppers in South Korea. On the side of online retailers, there was increased investment and competition among express and speedy delivery offerings in 2014 and early 2015, especially in China and Taiwan.
Overall, B2C E-Commerce growth in Asia-Pacific continues to drive investment in this sector, including in logistics and delivery capabilities. In order to compete in the face of improving local offering in Asia-Pacific, cross-border online retailers have to take into account the importance of delivery costs and speed to online shoppers.
More details on this topic are available in our reports about this booming region: “Asia-Pacific B2C E-Commerce Market 2015”, “Asia-Pacific B2C E-Commerce Delivery 2015” and “Asia-Pacific Cross-border B2C E-Commerce 2015”.
