蘑菇AV

YouTube鈥檚 global prowess is particularly notable because the platform is not available in China, one of the largest potential digital markets, yet still has billions of users. Despite having more users than other platforms, YouTube is not No. 1 in digital ad revenue share worldwide. That distinction goes to Amazon, followed by Instagram, ByteDance, TikTok, and Pinduoduo.

Social commerce will finally realize its potential. Social commerce has reached an inflection point in the UK. The UK is still playing catch-up with China and the US on social shopping. Meta has been slow to introduce commerce functionality on its platforms in the UK; brands are cautious about investing in social; and consumers are turned off by fears of fraud.

Once again, China pulled the region up, as it was the No. 1 country globally. Traditional media adoption trailed across the board. The region ranked last in watching TV (72.2%), listening to the radio (42.5%), and reading newspapers (36.1%). Device Ownership. East Asia and Oceania ranked No. 1 globally for smart wristband ownership, at 18.1%. China and Taiwan led, with ownership rates above 20%.

Our take: Geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty are forcing retailers to rethink their approach to China. From a manufacturing standpoint, the threat of new tariffs is pushing many to diversify their supply chains away from China, although many companies will likely remain reliant on Chinese products and parts.

The retail space is changing rapidly as marketers experiment with things like retail media, generative AI, and social commerce. In this discussion, Zia Daniell Wigder, Chief Content Officer, Insider Intelligence, talks about the trends on her radar and what she learned at Shoptalk.

TikTok has also reportedly stored sensitive financial data of its major influencers on Chinese servers, countering CEO Shou Zi Chew's claims that US data is stored only in Virginia and Singapore, per Forbes.

But that boom might be short-lived鈥擯resident Donald Trump鈥檚 high tariffs on China could reduce US social media ad spending in 2025 by up to $10 billion versus our existing forecast, shrinking the revenue pool that creators and content platforms rely on and potentially making investors more cautious.

On May 12, the Trump administration reduced the tariffs on Chinese goods from 145% to 30% for 90 days, providing temporary relief for some retailers and brands. But the removal of the 鈥渄e minimis鈥� tax exemption is still in effect, putting pressure on China-based ecommerce sellers and other companies that ship from China.

Despite uncertainty related to the economy and tariffs, US social network ad spending is expected to grow. AI offerings, social commerce, and lower-funnel investments will drive outlays.

(Don鈥檛) follow the leader: Earlier this year, Shein flew a group of influencers to China to tour some of its manufacturing facilities with the goal of proving it wasn鈥檛 engaging in unethical or unsustainable business practices.

TikTok鈥檚 rapid ascent in social commerce is drawing comparisons to Amazon鈥檚 flywheel strategy. The platform is taking multiple steps to achieve its goal of quadrupling its global ecommerce business to a potential $20 billion in annual merchandise sales through TikTok Shop. Here鈥檚 what鈥檚 working, what isn鈥檛, and what has yet to be seen.

When it comes to social commerce, the UK is certainly no China鈥攚here more than 50% of social network users are expected to be social buyers this year. But there is at least some interest in purchasing through social channels. Facebook is well out in front in this regard, but TikTok users aren鈥檛 opposed to buying on the platform.

On today's episode, in our "Retail Me This, Retail Me That" segment, we discuss the opportunity for China-based companies like Shein, Temu, and TikTok in the US, and how they can compete with Amazon. Then for "Red-Hot Retail," our analysts give us some spicy predictions about how fashion retail will change in the US as a direct result of Chinese manufacturers. Join our analyst Sara Lebow as she hosts analysts Sky Canaves and researcher and Asia-Pacific lead Man-Chung Cheung.

Penetration is high given the dominance of specific mobile messaging apps in certain markets, such as WeChat in China, Line in Japan, KaKaoTalk in South Korea, and WhatsApp in major Western European countries. By 2027, WeChat will have reached almost 900 million users in China. North American adoption is significantly lower than the global average.

Go further: Check out our Beauty Ecommerce 2025 and US Social Commerce forecasts.

Amid escalating geopolitical tensions and regulatory scrutiny in the US and Western Europe, Chinese ecommerce giants are increasingly turning their focus to Asia-Pacific.

Livestream commerce is a massive business in TikTok parent ByteDance鈥檚 home country of China, where consumers spend hours watching shoppable live videos hosted by celebrities and influencers. We expect shoppers in China to spend $234.75 billion on livestreaming social commerce in 2023, accounting for 45.4% of the country鈥檚 social commerce sales. TikTok Shop may have already hit a roadblock in the US.

Voice assistant usage in India led the region and trailed only China globally. More than a third of respondents (35.7%) used a voice assistant: 23.8% to find information and 22.9% to complete a task. Following vlogs/influencer videos was reported by 30.2% of respondents in India. That rate of adoption ranked India No. 2 globally, trailing only the Philippines.

I think one of the most interesting ones actually came from the Verishop CEO and he was talking, again, about social commerce and he was talking about one of the reasons why it has succeeded in China in a way that it hasn't elsewhere. And everyone likes to talk about the fact that it's a massive market in China and that it's never going to resonate in the US or outside the country.

Social commerce on TikTok in the country is limited to transactions triggered by in-app display ads but completed off-platform on retailer sites. Video Shopping Ads are available in Canada, requiring retailers to establish a catalog within TikTok鈥檚 business dashboard (rather than using a TikTok Shop account, a feature available only in the US, UK, and six countries in Asia, or via Douyin in China.).

It helps that the company sources less than 10% of its inventory from China and less than 1% from Mexico and Canada combined, limiting its exposure to tariffs. It also helps that Gap鈥檚 wide array of brands enable it to appeal to consumers of all income levels and benefit from any trade-down behavior.

But social commerce sales will continue to grow in the double digits each of those years. Growth will be driven specifically by Amazon鈥檚 investments in shoppable media across social platforms. Click here to view the full forecast for US social commerce sales.

QVC partners with TikTok as time runs out on second ban deadline: The retailer鈥檚 bet on the platform reflects both the growing importance of social commerce as well as confidence in TikTok鈥檚 future.