Thailand ranks as the regional leader in online shopping, according to a survey by MasterCard Worldwide.
Some 93% of Thais surveyed said they planned to make a purchase online over the next six months, tied with China for first in the region. Korea was third at 84%, followed by Malaysia at 79%.
MasterCard surveyed 25 emerging markets from December to February. The Asia Pacific report included interviews with 7,373 respondents from 14 markets.
The payments company said Thai shoppers cited strong confidence in domestic economic growth and growing access to the internet as factors positive for online shopping.
Thai online shopping grew 13% in 2011 compared with the year before. Indonesia and the Philippines topped the region with 15% growth in 2011, while India, Singapore and Korea all reported declines of 14%, 10% and 17% respectively, said Philip Yen, MasterCard's group head for emerging payments for Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa.
MasterCard is looking to expand its online shopping presence, including business e-commerce and new payment technology such as near field communications (NFC) using smartphones.