B2B, B2C, Shanghai to E

E-commerce is a top priority for this east coast city hoping to make up for lost time, participants at an IT forum said yesterday.

"We can't let the chance of developing e-commerce slip away in the new century," said Zhang Guangsheng, director of the Shanghai Municipal Commercial Commission, noting that basic retail has jest recently caught up with that of the United States. "E-commerce is a challenge to the city's traditional commercial pattern and an opportunity for the city to develop its economy."

He said to help the city go forward instead of sideways, Shanghai sponsored the conference. It is called the International Forum on E-Business For Commercial Development.

At the two-day forum, which drew 300 people and ends today, 16 experts from IBM, Fudan University, BigStore Asia.com, Deloitte Consulting, the Gartner Group and Exel Logistics Ltd are talking about the various formats for doing business on the Net, including "business to consumer (B2C)."

"China's e-commerce is still in an embryonic stage," said Fudan University Professor Zhang Shiyong. "Only a small part of the country's more than 1 million commercial enterprises applies computer management. Even in Shanghai, I couldn't definitely say that there is a commercial enterprise that has launched modern management."

Of the country's 500 commercial websites, 85 per cent renew the information every six months, and 90 per cent contain only a photo of the general manager and the names of the photos of products.

Experts agreed there is great potential to develop e-commerce in China, especially in Shanghai.

With more than 1,100 e-commerce websites now in the country, experts anticipate that with China's 15.4 million netizens, Internet trade volume will be 500 per cent higher than that of last year.

"E-commerce has had a great effect on the economy, so the city government will pay great attention to developing e-commerce," said Vice-Mayor Feng Guoqin. "The construction of B2B commerce will be given priority to create a low-cost but large-scale commercial operation in the city. Meanwhile, B2C should also be promoted."