Beijing : BRICS countries account for 47 per cent of the global online retail sales surpassing $876 billion in 2016, a new study revealed on Thursday.

According to the study released by the Ali Research Institute affiliated with China’s e-commerce giant Alibaba, the figure is expected to climb to 59 per cent by 2022 as the five countries — Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa — have great potential in e-commerce cooperation, reports Xinhua news agency.

Last year, BRICS countries had 1.46 billion internet users and 720 million online shoppers, the study showed.

Russian candy and cookies; Indian handicrafts and spices; Brazilian nuts and propolis; and South African grapefruit and wine were the best sellers, the study added.

According to AliExpress, an e-commerce site for cross-border exports run by Alibaba, made-in-China goods like clothes, accessories, mobile phones and electronic products were most favoured by BRICS customers.

“Increasing disposable income, wide use of the internet and improved payment and logistics services have driven the sustained and rapid development of e-commerce in the five countries,” said Ouyang Cheng from the Ali Research Institute.

hina, which holds the BRICS presidency this year, will host the bloc’s ninth summit in September in Xiamen, Fujian province.

—IANS