Mobile commerce in Singapore to pass $850m in 2017

Despite a slower economic outlook, more than a third (38%) of online adults in Singapore interviewed in a 2016 study by PayPal say they will be spending more online this year, largely due to the convenience it brings.

Notably, another 78% who predicated an increase in their online spend also cited convenience as the reason.

Specifically, survey results showed that Singaporeans are turning their attention to spending on day-to-day items, with predicted growth for household goods (21%), groceries, food and beverage, and alcohol (15%), and baby and children’s supplies (12%) topping the list.

Results indicate an increasing growth in mobile spend as Singaporeans spend more time on their mobile devices, with mobile shopping spend predicted to increase by 42% this year over 2016. This amounts to more than S$1.2 billion ($848 million), almost a third of the forested total online spend of S$3.5 billion in the country.

The numbers explain the mobile first attitudes of firms in the region, and makes sense when one considers that the Asia Pacific is the leading region in terms of mobile connection penetration.

In addition, two thirds (68%) of all cross-border shoppers interviewed in the region have made a cross-border purchase on a smartphone in the past 12 months, which is the highest net incidence out of all regions surveyed.

“2017 looks to be a year of growth and opportunities for savvy businesses that are equipped to take their sales online, on mobile and in-app. This in turn provides endless choices and possibilities for the mobile-savvy generation as they live their lives on the go,” said Rahul Shinghal, general manager for PayPal Southeast Asia.

PayPal’s study dovetails with another study late last year which concluded that the Asia Pacific region leads the world in mobile payment. Conducted by Kantar TNS, the study of over 70,000 consumers found that over half of connected users use their smartphones to pay for goods or services at point of sales via apps.