Hong Kong e-commerce merchants embrace cross-border sales amid economic challenges, survey finds
- One third of Shopline’s Hong Kong clients were engaged in cross-border sales in 2023, seven percentage points higher compared to previous years
- The potential of cross-border trading has been demonstrated by the huge overseas popularity of Chinese platforms Shein and Temu
A growing number of Hong Kong e-commerce merchants are expanding their business to customers beyond the city, according to the latest report by e-commerce solution provider Shopline.
About a third, or 34 per cent, of Shopline’s Hong Kong clients were engaged in cross-border sales in 2023, seven percentage points higher compared to previous years, according to the Hong Kong eCommerce White Paper released by Shopline on Thursday.
Macau is the largest destination for Shopline cross-border sales, accounting for 37 per cent of total sales last year, while the US market is in second place with 14 per cent. The United Kingdom and Taiwan were ranked third and fourth, respectively.
The trend reflects the interest of Hong Kong merchants to find new ways to boost sales amid market challenges, as the city’s economy has yet to recover to pre-Covid-19 levels, and competition from online and offline rivals in mainland China has intensified.
China plays up cross-border e-commerce at forum as exports rise
The potential of cross-border trading has been demonstrated by the huge overseas popularity of Chinese online retailers like fast-fashion brand Shein and Pinduoduo’s sister platform Temu.
“We do observe the chances of cross-border [sales],” said Renee Lee, head of product for Shopline Hong Kong, adding that the firm is developing new features to help merchants improve their cross-border gross merchandise value (GMV).
The white paper shows that artificial intelligence (AI) tools are able to improve overall sales performance, with the conversion rate up 25 per cent and GMV increased four times for merchants who use Shopline’s AI tool Smartpush. Powered by generative AI, it is capable of customising email content for potential customers and adjusting marketing strategies based on auto-analysing consumer data.
“For cross-border merchants, generative AI tools are cost-effective,” said Ruby Chan, marketing director at Shopline. She added that AI can respond to inquiries from different time zones 24 hours a day, so merchants can save on labour costs.
Another continuing trend flagged in the white paper was live-commerce sales. Data shows that merchants using Shop Live increased their order volume by nearly nine times in 2023 over the previous year, compared to those not using the function. This drove a nearly 30 per cent increase in order volume for these merchants, and a nearly 40 per cent year-on-year increase in sales revenue, reflecting the strong potential for conversion in live commerce.
