Western and Central Europe see increase in B2C E-Commerce

Hamburg-based secondary market research company yStats.com has recently announced publication of its “Western and Central Europe B2C E-Commerce Report 2013.” This report indicates, among other things, that a double digit growth rate above 10% in Western Europe is expected for 2013, though this growth rate will decrease by 2017. Total B2C E-Commerce sales in Western Europe are expected to reach over 300 billion euros by 2016. Cross border shopping is a growing trend throughout the continent, reaching over 10% of online shoppers in 2012, a figure expected to double by 2015.

Online shopping one the increase

The yStats.com report points out that the countries with the highest online shopper penetration are the Scandinavian countries, UK, Germany, Netherlands and France, all above the EU average. The most popular product categories in Europe by audience reach were consumer electronics and apparel. The Leading shopping websites were Amazon, Apple, and Otto Group’s sites. Price comparison websites are also popular.

Western and Central Europe are considered mature B2C E-Commerce markets

In Germany, B2C E-Commerce sales reached several tens of billions of euros in 2012 and showed double digit growth over 2011. As a share of total retail sales, B2C E-Commerce accounted for several percentage points less than 10% in 2012, and the share is expected to increase by one percentage point in 2013. The most used payment methods for online shopping in Germany are invoice and PayPal, a contrast with many other European E-Commerce markets where bank cards are the most popular payment method. US based mass-merchant Amazon is the largest E-Commerce player, while the Germany based Otto group continues expansion into domestic as well as international B2C E-Commerce. German online retailers benefit from popularity with shoppers in neighboring Austria.

B2C E-Commerce sales in the United Kingdom reached a significant double digit figure in billions of Euros in 2012, and further growth is expected. One on the main trends driving online shopping in the UK is mobile commerce: the share of mobile purchases on total B2C E-Commerce sales doubled in 2012. Major online sales players such as Amazon, Argos, Next, and Tesco have a significant share of traffic generated through the mobile channel. In France, B2C E-Commerce sales approached half a hundred billion Euros, reflecting double digit growth in 2012. Amazon, Cdiscount, La Redoute and FNAC are among the leading online sellers in France, but the market is diverse, as large players account for over 2/3 of the market, but the top 10 for less than half.

In contrast to the general economic situation in Italy and Spain, E-Commerce has experienced healthy growth in those countries, reaching a double digit figure in billions of Euros. Cross-border B2C E-Commerce is popular in Spain, where consumers shop online from overseas websites and Spanish online shops sell abroad. B2C E-Commerce also booms in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxemburg. In the Netherlands, B2C E-Commerce sales, including travel, already accounts for more than 10% of total retail sales and comparison shopping websites are especially popular, while in Belgium a current trend is cross-border shopping, reaching a quarter of online shoppers, more than double the EU average.

For further information, see:
http://ystats.com/en/reports/preview.php?reportId=1046

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yStats.com has been committed to research up-to-date, objective and demand-based data on markets and competitors for top managers from various industries since 2005. Headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, the firm has a strong international focus and is specialized in secondary market research. In addition to offering reports on markets and competitors, yStats.com also carries out client-specific research. Clients include leading global enterprises from various industries including B2C E-Commerce, electronic payment systems, mail order and direct marketing, logistics, as well as banking and consulting.

yStats.com GmbH & Co. KG
Behringstrasse 28a, D-22765 Hamburg
Phone: +49 (0)40 - 39 90 68 50
Fax: +49 (0)40 - 39 90 68 51
E-Mail: press@ystats.com
Internet: www.ystats.com

This release was published on openPR.