Cross-border retail e-commerce in Xiamen, a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, China, beside the Taiwan Strait, is growing rapidly at Xiamen Free Trade Zone in the first half year of 2017. The imported parcels (including personal express, cross-border direct purchase products) grew to 1.08 million pieces worth 180 million yuan in the first six months of 2017 with an increase of 180% and 245% YoY.

The explosive growth of cross-border retail e-commerce in Xiamen is just a reflection of the prosperity of cross-border retail e-commerce in China. Cross-border retail e-commerce of Guangzhou performed as good as Xiamen. From January to May this year, cross-border retail e-commerce of Guangzhou increased by 150%, and the volume remained the first in China.

E-Marketer magazine predicted that Chinese cross-border retail e-commerce would rose to increase by 29.1% to US$110.68 billion in 2017.

Health care products, maternal and infant supplies and foods, which are the important power of stimulating the domestic consumption, are the three most popular products among the cross-border retail e-commerce.

Frequent environmental pollution and food safety problems in China are the main reasons for consumers’ lack of confidence in the domestic food supply, thereby purchasing goods from other countries through the internet.

China retail industry development report 2016-2017