In China’s Taobao villages, e-commerce is one way to bring new jobs and business opportunities to rural areas
China’s worldwide e-commerce transaction value grew from less than 1% a decade ago to over 40% now, exceeding that of France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States combined, according to a McKinsey study. In rural China, the development of e-commerce shows strong signs of clustering. The number of Taobao villages – those significantly engaged in e-commerce with a total annual e-commerce transaction volume of at least RMB 10 million and at least 100 active online shops – has increased from 20 in 2013 to 3,202 in 2018.
