Indonesia to lead S-E Asian online shopping boom

Jakarta

INDONESIA is set to lead a boom in online shopping across South-east Asia as Internet access explodes and investors pour money into a rapidly growing host of retail startups, analysts have said. Much like China several years ago, the region is enjoying a rapid increase in Web access that observers say is starting to drive a fundamental shift in shopping habits among the emerging middle class.

According to a recent report by investment bank UBS, business-to-consumer e-commerce in South-east Asia will increase at least five-fold by 2020, and could reach US$35 billion a year. It cited strong growth in Thailand and the Philippines but said that Indonesia, the region's bigges…