1.Temu Tops the Annual UK Hot Search List with a 2850% Surge in Search Volume

December 28th News: Temu has successfully secured a spot on the annual UK hot search list, with the latest Google Trends data revealing the most searched keywords by the British people in 2023. Among them, Temu's performance stands out prominently.

Statistics as of December 21st show that Temu's search volume has skyrocketed by an astonishing 2850% compared to the same period last year. This surge even surpasses the highly anticipated growth of ChatGPT this year (which increased by 2700%).

According to foreign media reports, Temu has already made a significant impact on the UK market, becoming the most downloaded shopping app with an estimated user base of 9 million.

Source: Platform Opening Store Recommended Official

2.1688 Upgrades "Multi-Channel Distribution" and "Cross-Border Exclusive" Channels

December 28th News: In order to help small and medium-sized enterprises achieve global logistics, and assist businesses in obtaining more sales channels for cross-border transactions, 1688 platform will make adjustments and upgrades to "1688 Cross-Border Exclusive" and "1688 Multi-Channel Distribution and Sales Market."

Through this channel upgrade agreement, 1688 sellers can directly reach global "big B," "small B," and C-end customers, becoming a combination of Alibaba International and AliExpress, forming a competitive relationship with Temu and some sellers' dropshipping independent sites.

Source: Cross-Border E-commerce Cross-Border House

3.Shopify's New Upgrade Provides Structured Analysis of Return/Refund Reasons

December 28th News: Shopify has added structured analysis of return/refund reasons to the return workflow to improve the data collection process for in-store returns. This helps merchants gain deeper insights into product preferences, customer preferences, and issues related to low return efficiency.

Now, merchants can click to select reasons and view the option list available for returns. If a merchant clicks next after the return reason screen, the system will prompt the merchant to accept "unknown" return reasons. For each reason, merchants can choose to add remarks. If a merchant selects "other" for the return reason, they must enter the reason. Orders with undelivered items will not display return reasons, and the system will provide a freely fillable text field for entering refund remarks.

Source: Shopify E-commerce Independent Station Subscription Number

4.China Eastern Airlines Investment Plans to Transfer 40.5% Stake in China Eastern Airlines Logistics to China Eastern Airlines Group for Free

News on December 28th: China Eastern Airlines Logistics issued an announcement stating that China Eastern Airlines Investment intends to transfer its 40.5% stake in China Eastern Airlines Logistics to China Eastern Airlines Group through a non-compensated transfer of state-owned equity. After this equity change, China Eastern Airlines Group will directly hold a 40.5% stake in China Eastern Airlines Logistics, which is beneficial for concentrating on the development of the main business and enhancing equity value. China Eastern Airlines Investment legally holds 640 million shares of China Eastern Airlines Logistics, accounting for 40.5% of China Eastern Airlines Logistics' total share capital. These shares are A-share restricted circulation shares.

Source: China Eastern Airlines Logistics

5.Royal Mail to Launch Parcel Lockers

December 28th News: Royal Mail will deploy parcel lockers nationwide to keep up with the pace of rapid digitization in commercial businesses and modernize traditional postal services. This initiative is also aimed at competing with rivals such as Amazon by facilitating the collection of customer online shopping orders.

Nick Landon, Chief Commercial Officer of Royal Mail, stated that the company recognizes the increasing reliance on 24-hour delivery and parcel lockers in the market. The dynamics of the courier industry have changed, and consumers and shippers tend to prefer more convenient and time-saving solutions. The introduction of parcel lockers is seen as a key step in reducing reliance on postal workers and addressing the company's ongoing high vacancy rates and low employee morale.

Source: E-commerce News

6.MSC Container Ship Attacked in the Red Sea

December 28th News: MSC has confirmed that one of its container ships was attacked in the southern Red Sea. The attacked ship is named MSC United VIII, with a capacity of 8204 TEU and flying the flag of Liberia. At the time, it was sailing from King Abdullah Port in Saudi Arabia to Karachi, Pakistan.

Source: SINOTRANS Maritime

7.Shopee Localized Fulfillment Launches New Model of "One Store, Multiple Shipping" with Three-Party Warehouses

December 28th News: Shopee Localized Fulfillment has launched a heavyweight new model of "One Store, Multiple Shipping" and Shopee Express VIP Last-Mile Pickup Service. Under the 3PF PFF model of "One Store, Multiple Shipping," a store can choose to ship cross-border or from a local three-party warehouse. However, it is important to note that the shipping location cannot be changed after the order is generated. Currently, the three-party warehouse "One Store, Multiple Shipping" localized fulfillment service is available for Shopee sites in Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Singapore. The new model implements a global sales and review data sharing policy to enhance information transparency and help merchants optimize product marketing strategies.

Shopee Express VIP Last-Mile Pickup Service Shopee Express (SPX) is Shopee's self-operated logistics service, targeting designated third-party overseas warehouses. There is a VIP dedicated team that goes to the warehouse for targeted pickup every day, ensuring order fulfillment and improving delivery efficiency, aiming to deliver products to consumers faster and improve order fulfillment efficiency.

Source: Shopee Cross-Border E-commerce

8.Shanghai Airport and SINOTRANS Sign Strategic Cooperation Agreement for "Air Freight Pass" Platform

December 28th News: Shanghai Airport Group Logistics Development Co., Ltd. and SINOTRANS Air Transportation Co., Ltd. have completed the signing of a strategic cooperation agreement for the "Air Freight Pass" platform.

Currently, Shanghai's air freight hub is in a leading position globally, with an annual cargo handling volume exceeding 4 million tons. The freight business covers 5 cargo areas at Pudong and Hongqiao airports, 3 customs supervision areas, and involves more than 400 entities in regulatory units, cargo stations, security checks, ground services, airlines, and freight forwarding companies. Shanghai Airport has a large cargo scale, multiple operating units, and a long production chain, making the inbound and outbound processes relatively complex.

"Air Freight Pass" addresses these characteristics by integrating various production and operation-related data from the airport, customs, electronic ports, ground services, cargo stations, regulatory warehouses, and freight forwarding companies. It connects the entire chain of Shanghai's air cargo information, fills in the gap in the "single window" air cargo segment of Shanghai's international trade. The "Air Freight Pass" platform also has three major functions: "One-stop service, One-order comprehensive management, One-screen overall control," and provides services in both mobile and computer modes.

Source: China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing Aviation Logistics Branch

9.The Number of Asian E-commerce Buyers is Expected to Grow by About 52% from 2023 to 2028

News on December 28th: According to Statista's data forecast, the number of e-commerce buyers in Asia is projected to increase by around 52% from 2023 to 2028, rising from 1.33 billion to 2.03 billion. The rapid growth in the number of e-commerce buyers reflects the vibrant development of the Asian e-commerce market. In 2023, the Chinese market alone is expected to have 884 million online shoppers, while the United States has only 254 million. Besides the thriving e-commerce market in China, Southeast Asia is also a significant and noteworthy consumer base.

Source: DNY123