Accused of poor regulation and unfair competition by traditional import-export traders, cross-border e-commerce in China has been subject to new regulations since the beginning of April. Over the long term, the new regulation is expected to improve the shopping experience by focusing on the quality of goods.
With over 5,000 cross-border online trading platforms and more than 200,000 enterprises involved, e-commerce has become a major force for foreign trade into and out of China. In 2015, cross-border consumer deals settled online reached $ 40 billion, up 50 percent, representing over 6 percent of the total consumer e-commerce sector. China’s Commerce Ministry estimates the broader cross-border e-commerce market is much larger, growing at an average rate of 30 percent to reach up to $1 trillion by 2018. (analysis report) Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Alibaba’s Youku Tudou purchase, its investment in a US online grocery store and its spat with JD mark a return to the headlines for the company following a quiet period, as it regains confidence following a piracy scandal early this year.
Alibaba invests in US online grocer
E-commerce leader Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) may have briefly gone into headline hibernation over the summer when its stock was in free-fall, but it’s quickly returning to a more familiar hyperactive mode as its Singles Day shopping extravaganza approaches this week. The company is in at least 2 M&A headlines as we head into the new week, announcing its signing of a formal deal to buy leading online video site Youku Tudou (NYSE: YOKU) and reportedly nearing a deal to make a relatively big investment in a US online grocery site called Boxed.
Meantime, a recent spat between Alibaba and archrival JD.com(Nasdaq: JD) continues to make headlines just 2 days before Singles Day, which falls on November 11 and has rapidly grown to become the world’s busiest online shopping day. That spat burst into headlines last week and revolves around anti-competitive accusations made by JD, which has now also sued Alibaba for allegedly making inflated claims about its delivery service. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Alibaba’s potential new venture to bring Japanese imports to China looks like a smart move that plays to Beijing’s desire to boost consumer spending, and could serve as a template for similar import-related tie-ups.
Alibaba talks tie-up with Yahoo Japan
A potential major new tie-up between Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) and Yahoo Japan (Tokyo: 4689) aimed at bringing more Japanese imports to China looks full of promise, providing a possible major new growth source for the Chinese e-commerce giant. Such a tie-up would be especially exciting because it would bring together 2 of the largest e-commerce companies from the world’s second and third largest economies. It would also receive strong support from Beijing, which is rapidly dismantling many import barriers as it tries to boost consumer spending to prop up a slowing Chinese economy. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Best Buy’s sale of its Five Star chain represents a long-overdue withdrawal from traditional retailing in China, and it would be wise to consider an e-commerce option if it tries to return later.
Best Buy sells Five Star chain
Some might see retailing giant Best Buy’s (NYSE: BBY) newly announced sale of its Five Star electronics chain as a retreat from China, but I would personally congratulate the company for a shrewd move that was long overdue. That’s because traditional retailing is rapidly dying in China, as shoppers opt for the convenience, better selection and lower prices of e-commerce. What’s more, the traditional electronics retailing sector is already overcrowded and highly competitive, dominated by big national chains led by Suning (Shenzhen: 002024) and Gome (HKEx: 493) Read Full Post…
After a year of mostly hype, Shanghai’s new Free Trade Zone (FTZ) has finally begun showing the world some substance in the last 2 months with a recent string of high-profile announcements by major companies that plan to set up in its borders. Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) and Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) were among the first to announce plans, and were joined last week by US retail giant Costco (Nasdaq: COST) and top Chinese oil refiner Sinopec (HKEx: 386; Shanghai: 600028; NYSE: SNP). Read Full Post…
