The Chinese Sellers Riding the Rocket
The invasion of the domestic market by Chinese e-commerce platforms, represented by AliExpress and Temu, is showing a level of disruptive power beyond predictions. Our investigation found that sellers sourcing products from China and selling them domestically, whether through purchasing agents or direct buying, have been negatively impacted in terms of sales.
Against this backdrop, government agencies such as the Korea Customs Service, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and the Korea Post have been closely monitoring the spread of Chinese e-commerce platforms, preparing countermeasures to protect domestic industries and address the distribution of counterfeit products. They have reached out to us for information sharing as well.
However, sellers' concerns are not limited to the expansion of Chinese platforms in Korea. Korean e-commerce platforms like Coupang and Gmarket are also expanding their product categories by directly introducing Chinese sellers to compete against Chinese e-commerce platforms. Sellers must now be mindful of competition not only from Chinese platforms but also from Chinese sellers within Korean platforms.
