Retailing

Retail in 2023 presented a mixed landscape in Taiwan, marked by economic challenges as the country grappled with a recession in the first quarter. This downturn was primarily attributed to a decline in exports and subdued global demand for…

Sri Lanka experienced an economic crisis in 2022 with hyperinflation and severe import restrictions due to a lack of dollars. Many retailers struggled to meet demand with the country experiencing severe shortages, including for key products such as…

In 2023, retail in South Korea maintained solid current value growth both online and offline, with growth also returning to outlet numbers in the offline space. Value increases were seen across most channels, although growth in outlet numbers was…

Retail in Singapore has left the impact of the pandemic behind following the easing of restrictions, and has continued with resilient, albeit slower, growth in 2023. The full-scale resumption of social activities and the reopening of international…

In 2022, retail in Pakistan was severely impacted by the devastating floods and the economic crisis. Dwindling consumer purchasing power, supply chain disruptions, reduced agriculture output, weak lending activity by commercial banks and currency…

Retail in Myanmar witnessed double-digit growth in current value terms in 2022 but this was largely driven by high inflation and the depreciation of the local currency exchange rate. Households became more price sensitive amidst declining purchasing…

Following reopened borders and lifted restrictions in 2022, Malaysia's retail sector witnessed a surge in consumer revenge spending throughout the year. However, starting from the second quarter of 2023, the trend showed signs of decline as consumer…

Inflation remains high, making imported goods more expensive for consumers and restricting purchases of non-essentials, despite a degree of post-COVID-19 recovery. Retailing remains underdeveloped, with informal retailing dominant and benefiting from…

Kazakhstan has strong trade links with Russia in particular and its war in Ukraine negatively impacted the economy and led to high inflation. While skyrocketing international oil and gas prices boosted the local economy, its usual outflow to the…

Retail maintained solid current value growth in Japan in 2023, with increases across both offline and e-commerce. In 2023, offline retail regained stronger momentum due to the return of mobility post-COVID-19. On 8 May 2023, the Japanese government…

Retail saw current value growth in Indonesia in 2023. More premium orientated retailers saw particularly strong performances, as their core consumer base was less severely impacted by the economic difficulties seen at the end of the review period.…

The retail industry showed dynamic current value growth in India in 2023, driven by conducive macroeconomic factors, as well as the full return of mobility and travel after the end of the pandemic. The strong performance in 2023 can be attributed to…

Retail saw another year of solid current value growth in Hong Kong in 2023. However, the increase was mainly due to the low base, and sales were unable to recover to the 2018 level – pre-pandemic and protests. Nevertheless, benefiting from the…

Retail in China maintained current value growth in 2023. In early December 2022, the Chinese government announced “New Ten Measures” to optimise COVID-19 prevention, and it cancelled the zero-COVID policy. The whole country saw an end to…

The reopening of society after the pandemic is beneficial for Cambodia retail. While the majority of consumers still shop in traditional outlets, the retail landscape in developed cities is being modernised. This is driven by a growing number of…

Retail generated positive growth in 2022 despite high inflation and pressure on consumer spending. Higher levels of investment from key players boosted chained grocery retailing and e-commerce as consumers become more accustomed to more modern and…

Following the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic that caused oil prices to collapse in 2020 and annual real GDP to contract by 4.2% in 2020, the Azerbaijani economy rebounded strongly and grew by 5.6% in annual real terms in 2021. This is partly…

In 2023 retail e-commerce in Vietnam continued to see robust rises, recording faster current value sales growth than it did in 2022. Vietnamese consumers are increasingly family with e-commerce marketplaces, drawn to the very frequent offer of a…

In 2022, retail e-commerce continued to gain significant value share in Uzbekistan. However, its penetration level still lagged behind neighbouring countries such as Kazakhstan. Several factors hindered the further development of retail e-commerce in…

While 2023 saw higher foot traffic in shopping malls and other physical retail locations. e-commerce continued see significant expansion in current value terms. Online marketplaces, such as Lazada, Shopee, and Zalora were instrumental to driving up…

E-commerce sales in Thailand saw slowed but strong growth in terms of current value in 2023. The channel still accounts for an only small percentage of retail overall, though growth has been rapid and remained robust in 2023. At the same time, there…

As e-commerce in Taiwan matures, the dynamics of online shopping are undergoing significant shifts, presenting both challenges and opportunities for retailers. Despite experiencing growth in retail value sales in 2023, the pace of expansion has…

In 2023, retail e-commerce maintained double-digit current value growth in South Korea. In recent times, the retail landscape in the country witnessed a remarkable surge in online shopping activities, driving a substantial increase in online…

E-commerce in Singapore experienced a marginal decline in value sales in 2023 due to the normalisation of shopping habits. This was expected, given the sharp growth recorded by the channel during the pandemic, when consumers had limited alternatives…

Clicky, a fast-fashion e-commerce platform focused on apparel, footwear and accessories, has received investments from notable investors such as Fatima Ventures and Souq, a UAE-based company that was later acquired by Amazon. In December 2021, the…

Celebrating its first year in the Malaysian market, TikTok Shop has become the fastest-growing emerging e-commerce player in Southeast Asia, operating as an online marketplace within the TikTok video-sharing platform. The player attributes its…

E-commerce continued to grow but at a slower rate, partly due to the geopolitical situation. The war in Ukraine has resulted in supply chain disruptions, higher transportation tariffs and high inflation also higher prices for imports, due to currency…

After e-commerce showed double-digit current value growth during COVID-19 in 2020, growth slowed significantly in 2021, and remained at this lower level in 2022 and 2023, as with the reopening of physical stores post-pandemic, fewer people made the…

Retail e-commerce continued to register buoyant growth in Indonesia in 2023, continuing the trend seen throughout the review period. While the movement restrictions put in place to control the number of COVID-19 cases had a positive impact on online…

Retail e-commerce maintained dynamic current value growth in India in 2023, with double-digit growth seen across all categories. In particular, quick commerce has gained popularity for packaged food, and daily essentials such as home care products,…

After many years of double-digit current value growth for retail e-commerce in Hong Kong, sales turned to slight decline in 2023. At the beginning of February 2023 the Hong Kong Government implemented the full resumption of travel, with Hong Kong…

Robust growth continued for retail e-commerce in China in 2023, although the rate of current value increase was slower than seen in previous years. Retail sales were driven by strong performances for drinks and tobacco e-commerce, and for home…

In 2022 e-commerce penetration in Azerbaijan remained low though the channel continued to enjoy rapid and robust growth, gaining significant value share. Some consumers switched to purchasing groceries via e-commerce during the pandemic. However,…

Bazaars remain a favourite shopping channel for non-grocery products. Low-income shoppers, tourists, and anyone looking for a wide variety of items that they can negotiate prices on all frequently turn to bazaars. The abundance of products and the…

In 2022, rising inflation rates and the increasing cost of living had a significant impact on spending in non-grocery retail, in constant terms. The channels that were most affected were home improvement stores, followed by apparel and footwear…

In spite of high inflation caused by the war in nearby Ukraine and ensuing economic uncertainty, non-grocery retailers registered a slight increase in constant value sales in 2022. The return of foot traffic, post pandemic lockdowns, helped…

2022 saw the fuller return of consumers to offline shopping in Azerbaijan. Following two years of the COVID-19 pandemic and its related lockdowns and restrictions, local consumers prioritised store-based outlets in 2022, and visited shopping malls…

Hypermarkets in Vietnam continued to focus on network expansion into tier 1 and tier 2 cities in 2023, in response to higher living standards and modern lifestyles. E-Mart opened three new outlets over 2022-2023. The player has also been actively…

Hypermarkets in the Philippines recorded positive growth in in current value terms in 2023, albeit at a slower rate than the previous year. Sales were boosted an increase in mobility, which was evidenced by higher foot traffic in mall-based and…

Hypermarkets in Thailand saw current value sales slow in 2023, though growth remained positive. While these stores benefit from selling large volumes, growth is suffering because players focus on targeting customers with medium-to-low purchasing…

During 2023, retail value sales of hypermarkets recorded steady growth, aided by online sales and the expansion of delivery platforms. For example, following its acquisition by PX Mart in 2022, RT Mart underwent marketing integration to optimise…

In 2023, hypermarkets in South Korea faced even slower current value growth than in the previous year, along with a continued decline in outlet numbers, encountering a combination of changing consumer habits and difficult economic conditions. A…

With the additional space available in hypermarkets in Singapore, operators have identified an opportunity to incorporate specific services offering greater value in an attempt to improve the in-store shopping experience and make a trip to the store…

Hypermarkets was one of the retail channels hit hardest by the pandemic as demand for large-format modern grocery retailers plummeted. Quarantine lockdowns and restrictions on movement, combined with widespread fears of contagion, discouraged…

Hypermarkets usually sell a wider range of products compared with other types of grocery retailers, such as supermarkets and convenience stores, but may not be as centrally positioned or as favoured for regular visits. Nevertheless, hypermarkets…

Hypermarkets saw a decline in current value terms in Indonesia in 2023. Despite the positive trend observed in the overall retail industry in line with the ongoing post-pandemic recovery, larger modern retailers such as hypermarkets are struggling.…

After witnessing a significant fall in current value sales in 2020, in the first year of the pandemic, hypermarkets returned to dynamic growth in India in 2021 and 2022, and this trend continued in 2023, finally rising above the 2019 level of sales…

Despite seeing a halt to the decline in outlet numbers in 2023, hypermarkets continued its long-standing decline in retail current value terms in China in 2023. One driver of the fall in sales is that the channel is under intense competition from…

Home products specialists in Vietnam turned in a positive performance in 2023, with current value sales growth rising, though at a slower rate than was recorded in 2022 when the channel rebounded post-pandemic. Continued work-from-home trends have…

Home products specialists in the Philippines saw relatively modest growth in current value terms in 2023, compared to the previous year. This was due to persisting inflationary pressures, which placed a strain on household budgets, With many…