Direct purchases from China hit quarterly high as Temu, AliExpress popularity soars

Korean consumers' direct purchases from China hit a new quarterly high of 938.4 billion won (nearly $677 million) in the first quarter of 2024 due to the growing popularity of Chinese e-commerce platforms Temu and AliExpress.

Korean consumers' direct purchases from China hit a new quarterly high of 938.4 billion won ($677 million) in the first quarter of 2024 due to the growing popularity of Chinese e-commerce platforms Temu and AliExpress.

The total was up 54 percent compared to the same period a year earlier and accounted for a first quarterly record of 57 percent of total direct purchases by Korean consumers, according to data from Statistics Korea on Wednesday.

The total volume of online cross-border shopping stood at 1.65 trillion won in the January-March period, up 9.4 percent on year, also marking the largest figure for any first-quarter tally.

The United States was in second place with 375.3 billion won, down 19.9 percent from the previous year. The country accounted for 22.8 percent of total overseas cross-border buying.

The European Union took the third spot with 142.1 billion won, 8.6 percent of the total volume, the data showed.

Meanwhile, online shopping transactions in Korea totaled 59.68 trillion won, up 10.7 percent on-year in the first quarter, marking the highest total ever for a first quarter.

The boost came as demand for travel and transportation services and food items grew as people celebrated the Lunar New Year holiday from Feb. 9 to 12 this year.

Purchases made through smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices increased 10.8 percent on-year to 44.36 trillion won.

In March alone, online shopping transactions totaled 20.45 trillion won, rising 9.1 percent on-year.

The growth came as more customers bought vehicles and auto items with the start of the government's subsidy scheme for electric vehicles, the agency said.

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]