The picture shows that recently, villagers are broadcasting live at the e-commerce live broadcast base of Happy Flower Sea in Yanxia Village, yan ji zhen, Shuyang County, Suqian City, Jiangsu Province. Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Wenhui photo
According to the Russian satellite news agency, the head of the e-commerce department of the Ministry of Commerce of China recently introduced the development of e-commerce in China, saying that from January to October this year, the online retail sales in China reached 12.3 trillion yuan, an increase of 11.2%. The online retail of physical goods contributed 32.1% to the retail growth of social consumer goods.
According to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, in the United States, the usage of e-commerce service platforms originating from China, such as Temu Company and Xiyin Company, has surged. In October, the total number of American users of these two applications exceeded 100 million, reaching nearly 90% of the number of American users of Amazon, the largest e-commerce platform in the United States.
In recent years, the market scale of e-commerce industry in China has continued to expand, with a rapid development momentum. According to the data of China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, in October, the logistics index of e-commerce in China was 111.9 points, which remained above 110 points for five consecutive months.
At present, the development of e-commerce industry in China presents the following characteristics: First, the total amount is large. China has the largest online retail market in the world. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the national online retail sales in 2022 was 13.79 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 4%. Among them, the online retail sales of physical goods was 11.96 trillion yuan, accounting for 27.2% of the total retail sales of social consumer goods. Online shopping has become one of the main ways of consumption and shopping for consumers; Second, the innovation activity is high. E-commerce has a high degree of integration with information technologies such as "internet plus", and new consumption formats and new models such as instant retail, live e-commerce and social e-commerce have developed rapidly; Third, the social influence is extensive. E-commerce has low entrepreneurial threshold and various forms, which can effectively promote employment and promote consumption.
The booming e-commerce industry in China is based on many factors:
First of all, the development of China’s e-commerce industry is accompanied by the rapid popularization of the Internet. Over the years, the government of China has attached great importance to the construction of information infrastructure. The acceleration of broadband popularization and the decline of network tariffs have provided strong technical support for the development of e-commerce and cultivated a huge user base.
Secondly, the e-commerce industry in China benefits from the development of manufacturing and logistics industries in China. China’s manufacturing industry has ranked first in the world for 13 consecutive years, and its rich commodities and strong supply chain have provided important support for the development of e-commerce in China. At the same time, e-commerce relies on efficient logistics and distribution. In recent years, the express delivery industry in China has developed rapidly, which complements the development of e-commerce industry. Most private express delivery enterprises in China adopt franchise mode, which effectively solves the problem of high cost of express delivery.
Third, the development of China’s e-commerce industry cannot be separated from the support of national policies. Over the years, China government departments have adopted an inclusive and prudent supervision mode, leaving enough room for the development of new formats and promoting the development of e-commerce under the premise of strictly observing the safety bottom line.
E-commerce industry plays an active role in expanding domestic demand, stabilizing foreign trade and deepening international cooperation, adding strong momentum to China’s economy. According to the data released by the National Bureau of Statistics, in the first three quarters of this year, the national online retail sales reached 10.8 trillion yuan, an increase of 11.6%, which was 4.8 percentage points higher than the growth rate of the total retail sales of social consumer goods. Among them, the online retail sales of physical goods increased by 8.9% year-on-year, accounting for 0.7 percentage points higher than the same period of last year. It can be said that e-commerce has penetrated into every aspect of the lives of ordinary people in China, from basic necessities to daily entertainment.
In addition, China’s cross-border e-commerce has developed rapidly, and its advantages in "buying the world and selling the world" have been continuously consolidated and its potential has been continuously released, which has become a new engine for the high-quality development of foreign trade. According to customs statistics, in 2022, the import and export scale of cross-border e-commerce in China accounted for 4.9% of the total import and export value of national goods trade, and the proportion was basically the same as that in 2021. At present, there are over 1,500 overseas warehouses of cross-border e-commerce in China, with a total area of over 19 million square meters.
In the future, the development prospect of China’s e-commerce industry can be expected. At present, major domestic e-commerce companies are seeking new development opportunities and incremental space, and there are many new breakthrough directions in industrial transformation, such as live delivery, intelligent customer service, AI anchor and other new forms. In addition, the combination of cross-border e-commerce and China’s advantageous industries can further meet the consumption needs of global consumers and better lead China’s brand innovation.
At the same time, it is worth noting that in 2016, China and Chile, a country that jointly built the Belt and Road Initiative, signed the first memorandum of understanding on e-commerce cooperation, which opened the prelude to the international cooperation of Silk Road E-commerce. Up to now, China has signed memorandums of bilateral e-commerce cooperation with 30 countries, and "Silk Road E-commerce" has become a new channel and a new highlight of international economic and trade cooperation, with partner countries covering five continents. In the future, the international cooperation of "Silk Road E-commerce" will continue to deepen, which will greatly promote the construction of e-commerce related fields in the "Belt and Road" countries.
(Interviewed experts: interviewed by Li Mingtao, Yan Yu and Lin Peiqing, chief e-commerce experts of China International E-commerce Center)