A wave of Chinese cross-border e-commerce platforms are becoming increasingly popular with Australian consumers, helping ease pressure on the rising cost of living in the country.
Industry professionals in Australia like TK Wang are well aware of the benefits that come with shopping on Chinese e-commerce platforms. He noted that prices are significantly lower compared to local shops in Sydney and Melbourne. As a result, local customers have little reason not to buy, especially when they can find items that look nearly identical for half the retail price.
"So essentially they are buying from Chinese e-commerce to use as their stock or inventory and then they resell those products in the domestic content, for example in Australia or New Zealand," said Wang, who works as the supply chain manager for Epic Logic, helping connect Australian businesses with e-commerce platforms in China to source goods.
E-commerce giants JD.com and Alibaba's Taobao are among the latest Chinese companies to enter Australia, but other platforms have paved the way. According to Roy Morgan Research, Temu and Shein are also increasingly popular among consumers in Australia.
"What Australian consumers notice now is almost anything you search for, up pops a solution for that search which has come from either Temu or Shein, whether you know it or not. So it is an interesting combination of technology changing the behaviors of consumers and of course the product offering, and cheapness and the fastness," said Michele Levine, CEO of Roy Morgan Research.
Australia purchased about 71.64 billion U.S. dollars worth of goods from China in 2023. While it's not clear what percentage was driven by Chinese e-commerce platforms, it appears to be substantial.
"I think the e-commerce platforms from China were very popular 10 years ago and then they sort of slowed down a bit with COVID and the trade war with China. Now with the U.S. tariffs I think there is a chance to jump the tariffs and set up e-commerce platforms, so I think that will be one response," said Professor Tim Harcourt, chief economist at the University of Technology Sydney.
The Reserve Bank of Australia recently noted that U.S. tariffs could increase the inflow of Chinese goods, leading to lower prices and lower inflation.
Analysts noted that the rising cost of living is also helping to drive the popularity of Chinese e-commerce platforms, where lower prices and the speed of delivery are often tough to resist.
"Retail in Australia is facing many challenges, many challenges, and the cost of living is one of them clearly with people being very careful about what they spend," said Levine.
Chinese cross-border e-commerce platforms gain popularity in Australia
