PH seeks place among ‘most favorable’ e-markets

The government is pulling out all the stops to help position the Philippines as one of the most favorable e-commerce markets in Southeast Asia, according to the Department of Trade and Industry.

The trade agency thus lent its support to P-Commerce, the Pinoy e-commerce forum held Monday, and the Pinoy Cyber Sale to be held from Nov. 27-30, spearheaded by the country’s major e-commerce players Lazada Philippines and Zalora Philippines.

These activities are designed to entice more Filipinos to “embrace online shopping.”

Trade Undersecretary Prudencio M. Reyes Jr. noted that these initiatives contribute to the emergence of a dynamic and borderless economy in the region.

He also emphasized the key role of the private sector in empowering the e-commerce industry by closely collaborating with the government.

Earlier this year, the DTI said it expected the Philippine e-commerce market to double to about $2 billion in 2015, thus providing a huge potential for businesses and a significant contribution to the local economy.

Last year, local buy and sell transactions coursed through the Internet were valued at $1 billion.

Given the great potential of e-commerce, the DTI earlier committed to facilitate the formulation of the E-Commerce 2020 Roadmap, which would serve as the sector’s blueprint, containing the targets and key strategies to boost growth.

Last year, the Philippines was deemed one of the four “hottest e-commerce markets” in the region covered by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations by Hong Kong-headquartered Dezan Shira and Associates.

In the Asia Briefing Magazine entitled, E-Commerce Across Asia: Trends and Developments 2014, Matthew Zito of Dezan Shira and Associates said the Philippines stood out among Asean countries as it is the largest English-language online market in Southeast Asia.

Zito said this meant that foreign online retailers have less work to do in adapting their websites to the young and growing local market.

He cited Amazon, which ranked among the top 20 most visited sites among Filipinos despite the lack of a direct local presence.

Filipinos were also among the “biggest users of social media worldwide and the penetration of Facebook in particular is second to none,” he said.