Forecast: Aussie ecommerce to $13 billion by year's end

This is both good and bad news for Australian retailers: good because a growing number of shoppers are buying online, bad because many are turning to international sellers for products.

"US retailers have already targeted Australia, but there is plenty of room for expansion," said Jeffrey Grau, eMarketer principal analyst. "Besides sharing linguistic and cultural affinities, Australia does not require duty on imports under AU$1,000 ($1,031). Plus, the strength of the Australian dollar further adds to the attractiveness of this market."

In fact, the lack of some big-brand retailers having an online presence is helping Aussie shoppers find international brands - those from the US, UK and other nations. But those bigger brands are quickly adapting.

"Australian businesses are continuing to embrace the online sphere. Even companies such as David Jones are now expanding their online offerings to mitigate the risk posed by international entrants into the Australian market," writes Michael Daley, Hitwise Australia.

For February the top retail websites were OZsale.com.au (6.77% share), brandsExclusive (5.6% visit share) and ASOS (4.74% visit share). The top overall websites included Google Australia (10% visit share), Facebook (6.59% visit share) and YouTube (3.04% visit share).

Meanwhile, the NAB Australia reports local online sales increased 25% in 2011 while international online sales increased by 40%.

Tags: australian ecommerce, ecommerce, ecommerce trends, eMarketer, Hitwise Australia