eMarketer: Global e-commerce sales are expected to reach $1.2 trillion in 2013

On June 28, 2013, market research firm eMarketer released a report on Thursday, predicting that global e-commerce sales will reach 1.2 trillion US dollars this year, an increase of 17% over last year, with the highest growth in regions such as Asia-Pacific.

The report pointed out that Indonesia's e-commerce sales will grow faster than any other country this year, expected to reach 71.3% to $1.8 billion. In comparison, China, whose e-commerce market is 100 times larger than Indonesia's, will have the second highest growth rate, expected to reach 65.1%, with a total market value of $181 billion.

Overall, Asia Pacific is expected to generate $388.8 billion in e-commerce sales in 2013, up nearly a quarter from 2012. Only the Middle East and Africa, currently the world’s smallest e-commerce market, will see a higher growth rate, with sales in the region expected to rise by nearly a third to $27 billion this year.

The North American market is still the world's largest e-commerce market, with a total market value of $419.5 billion this year; however, as the world's most mature market, its growth rate will also be the slowest, with an estimated growth rate of 12.5% ​​this year, about 4.5% lower than the global average. Meanwhile, Western Europe is also growing slowly, with an estimated growth rate of 14% this year and a total market value of $291.5 billion; by early 2015, the region's growth rate is expected to drop to single digits.

eMarketer predicts that by 2014, the Asia-Pacific region will become the world's largest e-commerce market.