Southeast Asia’s internet economy will hit $105 billion this year amid increased e-commerce activity due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report published on Tuesday. Despite a global economic slowdown, the gross merchandise value of the region’s internet economy has remained steady at an estimated $100 billion in 2020 and is expected to exceed $300 billion by 2025, according to the e-Conomy SEA 2020 report by Google, Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings, and business consultants Bain & Company. The report covers the largest economies in the Southeast Asia region - Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore and the Philippines. It said e-commerce usage surged 63% this year to reach $62 billion, while travel businesses suffered significant challenges and contracted 58% to $14 billion. Digital financial services have also seen a significant rise, with the average proportion of cash transactions declining from 48% of the total before the pandemic to 37%, the report said.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 11th, 2020.
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