Asia is the world's largest continent both in terms of land mass and population. Now, if you add Oceania in there to galvanize the entire Asia-Pacific trading zone, you will get what researchers of the e-commerce industry have termed as the world's largest online retail market.
In 2015, the Asia-Pacific e-commerce market oversaw more than $730 billion in annual sales and recent reports indicate that Asia alone is now overseeing more than $770 billion while Australia is tipped to cross the $35 billion mark this year despite having a population of less than 25 million people. If you throw in New Zealand and the rest of the Oceania countries, then Asia-Pacific market could be already overseeing upwards of $830 billion.
This translates to growth of about 13.7% from 2015-2016. This is in line with Forrester Research's forecast that the Asia-Pacific e-commerce market will grow to $1.4 trillion by the year 2020. Assuming that the 13.7% CAGR will gather pace down the years to stand at an average of 14%, the Asia-Pacific e-commerce market will hit more than $1.4 trillion in four years.
Australia, Japan, and South Korea are already considered to be mature markets in the e-commerce space. However, they are not short of positives that could drive growth in the coming years. More entrepreneurs are now launching their businesses online and this move is having a retrospective impact on startup enthusiasts. Take for example Truck Dealers Australia, which is an asset finance platform that allows individuals and businesses to apply for credit via their platform within minutes.
This is not only encouraging for new businesses looking to access financing, but it also helps them to maintain pace with the developments in the e-commerce industry thereby reaching more customers.
China and India are the region's largest e-commerce markets based on current numbers and the potential for growth. This is due to their massive populations and the growing internet penetration amongst locals. Despite both accounting for more than 50% of the region's population, infrastructure is still nowhere close to the levels in developed countries.
