Although the global economic downturn has affected both traditional and online retailers, analysts say the gloomy economic outlook is actually encouraging consumers to hunt for second-hand goods online or make greater use of auction and rental websites such as http://www.thatbagiwant.com.

Asia's tech-savvy online shoppers buy everything from furniture and flowers to airline tickets and iPods. Online games such as mahjong are gaining popularity in Taiwan. In Hong Kong and Australia, shoppers are drawn to overseas retail websites.

Amazon.com and eBay are among the most popular sites in Asia. In China, e-commerce firm Alibaba.com operates an online site connecting importers and exporters of Chinese goods.

Online Gems

On eBay India, which has more than 2 million registered users, top purchases in 2008 included gemstones, mobile handsets, MP3 players, women's apparel and Indian stamps and coins, said Deepa Thomas, eBay India's senior manager of pop culture.

The company's sales show that despite relatively low Internet penetration, Indians have readily embraced online shopping.

"Earlier, people only bought easily affordable items, but now they're also buying more high-value items and unusual items as they have more confidence shopping online," said Thomas.

Market research firm Euromonitor International forecasts Internet retail sales in the Asia-Pacific region will reach in excess of $71 billion by 2012, almost doubling that of 2007.

Asia still lags behind the United States, where Forrester Research projects online spending in 2009 to reach about $156 billion, up from $141 billion last year.

In the recession-hit U.S., online sales at retailers such as Best Buy Co Inc and Macy's Inc continue to grow despite weaker store sales.

... contd.