China will remain the leading e-commerce market: GlobalData

It will achieve $2.2t of e-commerce market sales by 2030.

China will continue to dominate the e-commerce market globally as its sales are expected to reach $2.2t, with consumers turning to online shopping from offline, according to a report by GlobalData.

China’s e-commerce market reached $2t in 2022, accounting for 33.9% of the global payments value in 2022.

“The Chinese e-commerce market evolved rapidly during the last five years, supported by the rapid adoption of smartphones, growing internet penetration, increasing number of online shoppers, and the availability of alternative payment solutions such as Alipay and WeChat Pay,” said Ravi Sharma, Lead Banking and Payments Analyst at GlobalData.

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“The COVID-19 pandemic further accelerated e-commerce activities in China, as wary consumers are increasingly using online channels for purchases to avoid getting exposed to disease vectors, a trend that is set to continue,” Sharma added.

Livestreaming shopping and social commerce are amongst the trends in China’s e-commerce industry.

It is also driven by the improving e-commerce activities in rural areas. Data from the country’s Ministry of Commerce showed online retail sales in rural areas rose by 12.5% year-on-year in the first half of the year.

“The Chinese e-commerce market will continue to grow supported by the rise in consumer preference for online shopping, improved payment infrastructure, and proliferation of payment tools,” Sharma added.

China’s e-commerce market is expected to rise by 11.6% between 2023 and 2027 to reach $3.4t by 2027.