CHINA'S e-commerce transaction size is expected to double to 18 trillion yuan (US$2.86 trillion) by 2015 and online retail volume will rise to 3 trillion yuan, according to the latest industry guideline.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology encouraged domestic online retailers to carry out more cross-border e-commerce businesses and help small and medium-sized enterprises to boost competitiveness, according to the 12th Five Year Plan for e-commerce industry released by the ministry on its website.

The online retail transaction volume was 513.1 billion yuan in 2010, or 3.3 percent of total retail transactions of consumer goods and the figure is expected to rise to 9 percent by the end of the 12th Five Year Plan.

The ministry also said it will support Internet companies to set up export trade oriented cross-border e-commerce platforms.

The key areas for e-commerce development in this five-year plan include setting up online shopping platforms for agricultural products and establishing department stores and wholesale markets for e-commerce sites.

By 2015, the online procurement of domestic enterprises is expected to make up 50 percent of their total sourcing volume and online sales orders will contribute 20 percent of overall sales income, according to the guideline.

Source:shanghaidaily.com