On July 31, 2013, eBay Inc. released new research revealing Australian eBay commercial sellers are taking advantage of the revenue opportunity presented through cross-border sales.

eBay Inc.’s report Commerce 3.0: Enabling Australian Export Opportunities showed that Australian SME’s, despite their remoteness, are prolific exporters – when they leverage the Internet, and online marketplaces such as eBay. The report revealed:

  • Share of exports through eBay.com.au grew from 60% cent to 79% from 2006 to 2012
  • 78% percent of eBay.com.au commercial sellers export, increasing to 97% when they reach sales of AUD$100,000
  • eBay retailers in Australia employ up to 50,000 people
  • eBay.com.au commercial exporters sell to an average 28 overseas destinations
  • eBay represents around one in five Australian SME's (with sales between AUD $50,000-AUD $200,000), in other words a signiciant portion of SMEs

The paper was released at an event hosted by the Committee of Economic Development in Australia (CEDA), titled “The Digital Economy fuelling Australia’s export growth,” where attendees included representatives from government, industry and business.

“With some indication that cross border demand for Australian goods is expected to treble in the next five years, now is the time for Australian businesses to look hard at e-commerce for exporting.” said Bruce Gosper, CEO of Austrade (Australian Government’s trade, investment and education promotion agency), who was keynote speaker at the event.

International trade is traditionally associated with large corporations that can afford huge fixed costs required to ship goods across the globe.  However, the internet and technology are now allowing businesses of all sizes to engage in widespread cross-border trade, which is providing widespread economic benefits.  This paper looks closely at data associated with this phenomenon in the context of Asia Pacific, a region of the world where commerce has reached an inflection point.

Trade and globalization have no doubt resulted in increased jobs and wealth around the world, but up until now it has only been the few largest players who have been able to take full advantage of globalization. If a small business wished to participate in the global economy, it was largely relegated to providing an intermediate product to a large multi-national supply process. This model for trade is the result of the immense resources that have traditionally been required to develop an international consumer base and deliver a product or service efficiently across borders.

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