After a successful run last year, ASEAN will be launching the second iteration of ASEAN Online Sale Day (AOSD). AOSD 2021 will be a three-day online shopping event, from 8 to 10 August 2021 that will be conducted collectively on a regional scale. Once again, it brings together the best of ASEAN businesses, goods and services across the region on a single platform. It will also commemorate ASEAN Day on 8 August.
The ASEAN Coordinating Committee on E-commerce (ACCEC) officially launched a new and improved website dedicated to the event (http://onlineasean.com), which will feature participating businesses in the campaign. This new and improved website has a sleek and visually pleasing interface and categories to filter goods and services, all of which contribute to an enhanced consumer experience.
Last year, more than 200 e-commerce businesses in ASEAN participated in AOSD and offered a large range of goods and services at promotional or discounted rates through their e-commerce platforms. It is expected that there will be an equally strong, if not stronger, showing at AOSD this year.
ASEAN’s e-commerce sector is expected to triple in size from US$100bn to US$300bn by 2025 [1]. The COVID-19 pandemic has further boosted this trend of e-commerce adoption, providing a bright spot of growth. In Southeast Asia, 40 million people came online for the first time in 2020 alone, bringing the total number of Internet users to 400 million, up from 250 million in 2015.[2]
The second iteration of the AOSD hopes to further accelerate these trends and encourage consumers and businesses to engage in e-commerce across the region. The initiative also serves to reinforce and position the role of e-commerce and digital integration as a key driver of ASEAN’s economic growth. It complements ongoing ASEAN member states’ efforts to encourage digitalization among businesses and support post-pandemic recovery plans.
The AOSD will be held annually to encourage regional digital trade and enhance stronger collaboration between stakeholders, including relevant governmental agencies, the private sector, business associations and consumers, to explore new policy initiatives and to advance innovative technologies in our promotion of cross-border e-commerce activities in ASEAN.
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[1] Source: Google, Temasek and Bain & Company. e-Conomy SEA 2019 Report.
[2] Source: Google, Temasek and Bain & Company, e-Conomy SEA 2020 Report.