Alibaba beats Amazon to biggest e-commerce company, as Nigeria’s online retailers poised for growth

After 831 days, Alibaba Group Holding Limited Tuesday regained the title of the world’s biggest e-commerce company. The Chinese retailer beat Amazon.com Incorporated on an intraday basis as the United States of America retail giant’s stock continued to waiver after second-quarter earnings missed estimates and the merchant forecast a possible operating loss for the third quarter.

Alibaba, whose stock is up over 109 percent this year held the top spot for the first nine and a half months after its initial public offering in 2014.

Reports indicate that e-commerce has become a thriving global industry. A recent analysis by the Oxford Business Group showed that retail sales hit a massive $22b figure globally in 2016, with online shopping figures accounting for a major part of this expenditure.

In advanced climes where access to the internet stand at appreciable high and global retail sales, of which e-commerce is an integral part, e-commerce is projected to rise further to an estimated 27 trillion dollars by 2020.

A research by McKinsey, a worldwide management consulting firm shows that e‑commerce will open up a new shopping experience for Africa’s growing middle class. According to the company, e-commerce could account for 10 per cent of retail sales in the continent’s largest economies by 2025, translating into about $75 billion in annual revenue.

Analysts believe that with more Nigerians embracing the e-commerce amongst a growing awareness for globally celebrated shopping festivals such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the country is on the verge of reaping big benefits from fast growing sector.

Among the reasons given for the growth of the subsector in Nigeria includes growth in smart phone adoption, rise in mobile internet penetration, proliferation of e-commerce sites, ease and convenience in shopping, amongst others.

Some of the ecommerce portals in Nigeria includes Yudala, Wakanow, Jumia, kaymu, konga, Dealdey, OLX amongst others