Innovative Chinese models reshape global retail market

Visitors view cross-border e-commerce products at the 2026 Global Cross-Border E-Commerce Trade Expo in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, on July 10, 2026. (Photo: China News Service/Wang Gang)

(ECNS) -- Retail models pioneered and scaled in China, including live commerce, social commerce and instant retail, are reshaping how consumers worldwide discover and buy products and engage with brands, according to a report released Monday.

The report, The Commerce Revolution: Where East Meets West released by NielsenIQ, a world's leading consumer intelligence company, put China’s live-commerce market at about $900 billion in 2025, close to the size of the entire U.S. e-commerce market. China’s social-commerce market is projected to reach $1.8 trillion by 2030.

Asia Pacific accounts for about 55% of global e-commerce revenue, while 59% of consumers in the region have made purchases through social platforms.

(By Intern Yang Hongran, Zhang Dongfang)