阿里巴巴发布消费数据分析

Chinese consumers are buying healthier and smarter. That's the new trend based on Alibaba's newly released big data analysis report. The E-commerce giant have been gathering the consumption data over the past five years. So who are the biggest buyers and what industries have grown the strongest?

It’s arguably the most detailed study on China’s consumption trends. Alibaba is the country’s biggest online marketplace and it analysed its transactions made by over 300 million users from 2011 until September.

The study found five trending consumption features in China -- healthy, intelligent, personalised, traditional, and young.

Xia Ji, Marketing Director of Taobao, Alibaba said:"The Health category is mainly underpinned by Chinese consumers’ healthier eating habits, shown by rising organic food consumption. Meanwhile we’ve seen rising consumption of healthcare products and sports equipment such as treadmills and rowing machines. Under the intelligent category, smart home appliances are growing very fast, with the most popular item being cleaning robots. At least three out of every 10 families have bought them.”

This is the first time e-commerce giant Alibaba has released such a comprehensive data analysis of consumer trends. Some of its findings surprisingly do not match our everyday experiences."

"We are surprised to find that people’s shopping enthusiasm on Qi Xi, the traditional Chinese Valentine ’s Day, exceeds that on the actual western valentine’s day. We normally think there would be more young people celebrating the western Valentine ’s Day on February 14th. But big data tells us a very different reality. This is because more and more young people in China have started to value more of our own tradition," said Huang Lei, Manager of CBNdata.

Young people who were born in the '80s and '90s are the main force behind online shopping. Most people under the age of 25 rely on mobile phones to make their purchases, especially in China's second- and third-tier cities.

Huang said:"Central China, which is filled with second- and third-tier cities, is the region that has the biggest potential for consumption growth in China. We think small cities in central and west China will leap to catch up with the first-tier cities due to the use of mobile commerce."

The Alibaba report also highlights eight high-growth industries including baby and child care, outdoor sports, and cosmetics.