E-Commerce Sales in China's Poorest Areas Increased by Half Last Year
Zhang Yushuo
DATE:  Oct 15 2018
/ SOURCE:  Yicai
E-Commerce Sales in China's Poorest Areas Increased by Half Last Year E-Commerce Sales in China's Poorest Areas Increased by Half Last Year

(Yicai Global) Oct. 15 -- Online retail sales in Chinese impoverished areas grew by 52 percent last year to reach CNY120.8 billion (USD17.3 billion) last year, a government report has found.

A combination of the promotion of "e-commerce villages" and the Rural Taobao initiative from tech giant Alibaba Group Holding has provided some 1.3 million job opportunities across the country's 832 poorest counties, states the Development Report on Electronic Commerce in China's Rural Areas (2017-2018) from government agency the China International Electronic Commerce Center.

There still exists multiple issues in the sector's development at a rural level including a lack of talent and logistics facilities as well as difficulties in selling farm produce online, said Zhang Guo, deputy head of the agricultural ministry's information center. Agricultural brands also often use outdated marketing strategies and related supporting or guiding policies are essential for better development in the field.

The current development of rural e-commerce is unbalanced at present as it is easier for some industrial products to reach rural areas but harder for agricultural products to be sold online, said Bai Chengyu, head of UN Programs at China International Center for Economic and Technical Exchanges. Development also varies between regions with the central, western and northeast regions lagging behind that the more developed eastern side.

The keys to solving these problems lie in promoting the efficiency of e-commerce transactions, optimizing supply chains, improving product quality and brand premiums as well as through conducting in-depth research into the consumer market, Zhang added.

Rural e-commerce has deeply transformed the industrial and supply structures in China's rural areas and has gradually released the great potential of the rural economy, which is quite significant for the promotion of rural prosperity and targeted poverty alleviation, Fang Aiqing, the former head of China's commerce ministry commented.

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Keywords:   E-COMMERCE,Countryside