The Week in eCommerce: Week 34 (August 22 – 28, 2021)
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This week, in the fields of e-commerce and entrepreneurship, the Arab world and the Middle East experienced a phenomenal wave of events and news.
According to reports, the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) was a major reason for a noticeable increase in the number of online consumers and digital converts in the Arab region.
We’ve compiled the most important e-commerce events and updates in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) market for you in this weekly report. Let’s dive into the details!
A Huge Turn in Bahrain: 86% of Consumers Switched to Online Shopping
Bahrain’s e-commerce market witnessed a considerable increase in the number of online shoppers, with 86 percent of consumers opting to acquire their necessities online.
As stated in the report prepared by Sitecore, the global leader in digital experience management software, which included over 12 Arab countries.
YouGov Mena’s research surveyed over 650 IT decision-makers in 12 countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Levant, and Egypt, showing that the spread of the emerging coronavirus (COVID-19) was a major reason behind this great digital transformation of customers and consumers in Bahrain.
For more details and information, please check the following link.
Oman Joining the Marathon: 77% of Omani Customers Shop Online
Sitecore, a giant in digital experience management software, stated that 77% of Omani customers have gone digital and are buying their products from online e-commerce stores.
This coincides with the emergence and spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and its mutated strains, since last March 2020. YouGov Mena conducted such a study. It surveyed over 650 IT decision-makers in 12 countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Levant, and Egypt.
Also, a recent report by MarketLine said that the e-commerce market in the Middle East reached $12.1 billion in a year, representing a growth of 53.8% year on year.
Learn more through the following link.
Egyptian Tax Authorities Set the Due Date for Registering the Electronic Invoice System
The Egyptian Tax Authority revealed the last due date for major taxpayers to join the electronic invoice system. They set the due date for this September 15th, 2021.
Reda Abdel Qader, head of the Egyptian Tax Authority, stated that the total number of companies that joined the electronic invoice system in Egypt reached 2,200, warning against referring non-compliant companies to the prosecution.
The Egyptian Tax Authority had asked 134 major taxpayer companies to issue electronic tax invoices in mid-November 2020.
While the second phase, which made electronic invoices mandatory, included 374 companies, which started on February 15, 2021.
As the third phase began on May 15, 2021; it included the remaining large corporate taxpayers.
A Good Omen for Merchants: Talabat Offers a Cashless Payment System
Talabat UAE, the most popular food delivery and commerce platform in the Arab region has announced that it has made a cashless payment system only available to all its sellers in the United Arab Emirates.
The company stated in their statement that the new cashless payment option aims to reach 100 percent cashless payments in the coming years; To support the vision of the UAE to remain among the top 10 cashless payment economies in the world.
Besides its desire to secure its customers from exposure to the Coronavirus (COVID-19), facilitate payment processes, and provide sellers with faster settlement and greater financial transparency.
For more details and information, visit the following link.
