This year Belgium is in ninth place in the Global Retail E-Commerce Index, carried out by A.T. Kearney. For the third year running this report judges the potential for e-commerce in 30 countries. Belgium is currently the country increasing the most, moving up 15 places in the ranking. The top 3 e-commerce countries are the United States, China and the United Kingdom.
The index takes into account nine variables, including a number of macro-economic factors and the use of technology by users, their purchase behaviour, and the infrastructure. It compares indicators of the current retail market to indicators predicting potential growth in the future.
In the accompanying report, AT Kearney commends Belgium on its infrastructure and the growing number of online shoppers: "Belgium is small, but the market is bursting with potential. The infrastructure is sound, the number of online shoppers, which is already substantial, keeps growing and the competitive landscape is fragmented. Strong growth is expected in e-commerce (no less than 25 percent per year until 2020), particularly in the areas of clothing, food and electronics ".
