Research firm eMarketer reported on Wednesday that China will surpass the United States as the biggest retail market in the world this year. According to the firm's prediction, the country's total retail sales will increase by 7.5 percent reaching 5.636 trillion U.S. dollars for the year while the United State will gain around 3.3 percent to 5.529 trillion.
According to the report, the rise in sales is caused by China's rising incomes and thriving E-commerce. Monica Peart, senior forecasting director at eMarketer, said that, in recent years, consumers in China have experienced rising incomes, catapulting millions into the new middle class. She added that the result has been a marked rise in purchasing power and average spending per person.
The report of the National Bureau of Statistics reported that China's E-commerce is one of the major drivers of its retail economy and it is accounted almost a fifth of the nation's total retail sales last year. China's E-commerce giant Alibaba sales reached over 10 billion yen in over two minutes on Singles day, the country's annual shopping holiday. The company's 24-hour sales exceeded the combined sales of Cyber Monday and Black Friday as it reaches $31.46 billion. The world's largest retailer platform is projected to grow by 20 percent this year. Reports showed that the country's economic growth will rapidly grow in its second-and third-tier cities.
China's retail amounts to 55.8 percent of the global sales by the end of this year. The country's retail sales are expected to surpass 63 percent by 2022. The report also predicted that the global E-commerce share of the United States Market is projected to fall by 15percent in 2022.
According to Mark Lunt, group managing director of IT consultancy and services company JOS, the new Chinese generation are digital natives, at the same time, always looking for unique experiences. He added that traditional brick and mortar retailers extend customers' choice by providing integrated, consistent customer experiences across their digital and physical points as revenue from online sales channel continues to grow.
Lunt added artificial intelligence, big data, the so-called Internet of Things and cloud computing drives the retail growth of the Asian economic giant. According to him, the internet of things will integrate online and offline purchases in offering more personalized experiences.
Recent data showed that Chinese consumers are avoiding excessive spending because of the uncertainty of the future. China's economy grew by 6.6 percent in 2018. It the country's slowest growth for 28 years.
