1.Four Little Dragons" Dominate the 2023 Global Shopping App Growth Chart

News on January 24th reveals that the latest "2024 Mobile Market Report" from authoritative data analysis firm data.ai shows that the top 4 in the global shopping app download growth chart for 2023 are all taken by the Chinese e-commerce giants known as the "Four Little Dragons." These include Temu, SHEIN, AliExpress from Alibaba's Tmall, and TikTok Shop.

Taking the example of the Korean market, ranked fifth globally, data.ai shows that AliExpress was the most downloaded shopping app in Korea in 2023. In November 2023, AliExpress surpassed Gmarket, a local e-commerce platform, becoming the third-largest e-commerce platform in Korea. This marks the first appearance of an overseas e-commerce platform in the top three e-commerce platforms in Korea.

Source: Ebrun Dynamics

2.Amazon Reveals Best-Selling Products on its Latin American Platform in Q1

On January 24th, Amazon Global Store announced that the Amazon Mexico site experienced a surge of over 40% in visits from Chinese sellers during the Buen Fin and Black Friday promotions in November 2023. Over 5 million items were sold, showing a 77% year-on-year growth, with Chinese sellers achieving a new high in sales proportion. In Brazil, during the period from November 1 to 19, the Amazon Brazil site's traffic grew by 23%, accounting for 22% of the total visits to all e-commerce websites.

The first quarter of the year saw rich promotions on the Mexico and Brazil sites, with high shopping demand and full traffic. Amazon also recommended product guides for sellers. In Mexico, the most consumed category in 2023 was fashion, with around 40% of online shoppers purchasing fashion products. In Brazil, consumer electronics accounted for nearly 17%, with fashion and accessories being the best-selling segments. The Brazilian consumer electronics market is expected to generate $35.5 billion in revenue in 2024, with mobile phones being the largest consumer category.

Source: Amazon Global Store

3.eBay USA and Australia Improve Authenticity Guarantee Service Process

On January 24th, eBay announced improvements to the Authenticity Guarantee service process for handbags, aiming to enhance the efficiency of the authentication process in the luxury handbag category. The process involves verifying whether an item is genuine and ensuring the accuracy of the item's listing. In some cases, the item may be genuine, but there might be differences between the item and the listing description. In such cases, eBay informs the buyer about the differences, allowing them to decide whether to proceed with the purchase or return the item to the seller.

In Australia, starting from January 2024, eBay will notify both the buyer and the seller simultaneously if such differences are found, providing details on the eBay site. Sellers can view relevant notifications in the seller center. This new process was already implemented in the USA in September 2023.

Source: eBay

4.Guangdong's Cross-Border E-Commerce Import and Export Exceeds 800 Billion Yuan, Accounting for Over 1/3 Nationwide

On January 24th, the Guangdong Provincial Government Work Report mentioned that in 2023, the total import and export value of cross-border e-commerce in Guangdong exceeded 800 billion yuan, accounting for over 1/3 of the national total. The export growth rates of the "new three items" – electric cars, lithium batteries, and solar cells – were 229%, 15.9%, and 22.6%, respectively. The Greater Bay Area Global Investment Promotion Conference in 2023 reached 859 projects with a total amount of 2.24 trillion yuan. The utilization of foreign capital in the manufacturing industry exceeded 30% for the first time since 2019, forming a strong gravitational field attracting global high-end elements to Guangdong.

Source: Sina Finance

5.YunExpress E-commerce Logistics Adds 5 More Countries

On January 24th, YunExpress E-commerce Logistics added five more countries to its service, including the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Spain, and Italy. Along with the previously announced China-France line, YunExpress E-commerce Logistics now covers a total of six European countries. This expansion is expected to significantly improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of cross-border sellers in expanding their business in the European region.

YunExpress E-commerce Logistics leverages its independent and controllable large capacity, high-density flights, and a network layout of first-line warehouses and freight routes at home and abroad. It provides international express services that combine timeliness, stability, and cost-effectiveness.

Source: YunExpress

6.Hapag Lloyd Fully Acquires a UK Freight Company

On January 24th, Hapag Lloyd announced that the company has signed an agreement to acquire 100% of the shares of ATL Haulage Contractors Limited (ATL), a UK inland transportation company. This marks Herport's first acquisition in 2024.

ATL, established in 2008, is a private company with a fleet of 120 self-owned modern trucks, with an average vehicle age of less than 2 years.

Hapag Lloyd stated that as a trustworthy logistics partner in the UK inland market, ATL has rich professional knowledge and digital experience. After the acquisition, ATL will remain an independent company with its own brand, continuing to be operated by the existing management team, providing services to customers according to existing contracts.

Source: China Shipping Weekly

7.DB Schenker's Preliminary Operating Profit for 2023 is Estimated at 1 Billion Euros

On January 24th, according to preliminary data, DB Schenker's operating profit in 2023 is expected to see a significant decrease but still slightly higher than the previous year, reaching 1 billion euros (1.08 billion dollars). There is a possibility of further decline in 2024, followed by a subsequent rise. The decrease in DB Schenker's profitability will lead to a further increase in the net loss of German Railways to 1.2 billion euros (1.3 billion dollars) in 2023, compared to 230 million euros (249.7 million dollars) in 2022.

It is worth mentioning that January 15th was the deadline for submitting bids for the acquisition of DB Schenker, with several candidates participating in the bidding process, including DHL, DSV, Abu Dhabi Fund, as well as the three international logistics giants Maersk, MSC, and CMA CGM. The industry continues to closely monitor who will emerge as the final winner of the DB Schenker bidding.

Source: AJOT

8.United Airlines' Cargo Revenue for 2023 is $1.5 Billion

On January 24th, United Airlines released a report stating that at the end of last year, the rising demand in the air cargo market slowed down the decline in cargo revenue. In the fourth quarter of 2023, United Airlines' cargo sales performance decreased by 14.8% to $402 million, and the annual cargo revenue was $1.5 billion, a 31% decrease from the previous year. In 2022 and 2021, United Airlines' cargo revenue exceeded $2 billion at one point.

Cargo ton-miles grew by 16.9%, reaching 8.94 billion, indicating that United Airlines is gradually recovering to nearly full capacity on international routes. However, lower freight rates have affected revenue.

Source: FreightWaves

9.90% of Container Ships Redirection in the Red Sea Could Raise Global Inflation Levels

On January 24th, several institutions analyzed that the continuous blockage of the Red Sea-Suez Canal route, a major energy supply and trade route between Europe, the Middle East, and the United States, could once again raise inflation levels. European energy supplies are expected to face challenges due to the ongoing disruption.

According to statistics from the Dutch international group, after mid-December last year, about 80% of container ships on the Red Sea-Suez Canal route were forced to change their routes, reaching 90% in early January.

A research report released by the Oxford Economics Institute in January this year suggested that if container shipping costs remain at current levels, it could increase global inflation by about 0.6 percentage points. While the surge in shipping prices has not yet affected consumer prices, inflation rates in the United States and Europe rose in December last year. European economic experts warned that the rebound in inflation and increased "upward risks" signify ongoing uncertainty in the European economy.

Source: CCTV Finance