ONLINE SHOPPING SIMILAR TO GOING TO SHOPPING CENTRES, SAYS VISA

SINGAPORE, Nov 19 (Bernama) -- Online shopping is proving as appealing a shopping destination as the likes of shopping centres in Tsim Sha Tsui in Hong Kong or Orchard Road in Singapore.

According to a recent Visa e-commerce tracking survey, nearly 80 percent of
internet users surveyed in Asia Pacific said they made an online transaction
and spent an average of over US$3,000 each in the past 12 months.

The top three draws for shopping online were being able to shop at any time
(88 percent), at the best prices (83 percent), and being able to shop easily (82
percent), Visa said in a release Wednesday.

The over 3,000 respondents interviewed online, said their most commonly
made online purchases were digital entertainment (59 percent), travel (51
percent)and fashion (49 percent).

The online shoppers said they spent the most on travel services with an
average spending of US$812 in the last 12 months.

Travel items included airline and rail tickets, hotel accommodation and
travel packages.

Visa e-Commerce Asia Pacific regional head Mohamad Hafidz said roughly 1.4
billion people in the world used the internet on a regular basis this year and
in Asia Pacific, on average a person spent about 20.2 hours a month
online.

He said online consumers in Asia Pacific recognised the convenience of
online shopping as reflected in the high percentage of Internet users who buy a
wide range of products from that for everyday use to the occasional high-value
item online.