Study – Global retail sales to pass $22 trillion in 2014

New York - Retail sales worldwide, including both in-store and Internet purchases, will total nearly $22.5 trillion this year. According to new figures from EMarketer, the global retail market will see steady growth during the next few years, and in 2018, worldwide retail sales will increase 5.5% to reach $28.3 trillion.



When it comes to retail products and services purchased on the internet, retail ecommerce will account for 5.9% of the total worldwide retail market in 2014, or $1.32 trillion. By 2018, that share will increase to 8.8%. Yet even as Internet retail reaches nearly $2.5 trillion by the end of the EMarketer forecast, it will still account for a fraction of in-store purchases.



China and the U.S. are by far the world's leading ecommerce markets, combining for more than 55% of global Internet retail sales in 2014. China's growth during the next five years will widen the gap between the two countries, and China will exceed $1 trillion in retail e-commerce sales by 2018, a more than 40% share of worldwide retail e-commerce.



The U.S. will maintain its position as the second-largest retail ecommerce market in 2018, totaling nearly $500 billion that year, while the U.K. will account for about one-quarter of that figure in a distant third place.



By 2018, EMarketer estimates that 70% of the U.S. population will make digital purchases online, yet only 8.9% of U.S. retail sales are expected to come from Internet transactions.