From May 12 to May 18, the number of inquiries from US-based buyers to sellers on Alibaba.com, the e-commerce giant’s business-to-business shopping platform, surged by more than 40 per cent compared with the previous week, according to people briefed on the matter, who declined to be named as the data is not public.
Alibaba, which owns the South China Morning Post, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.
Some buyers are even looking to secure inventory for the holiday season, according to the data, with buyer inquiries related to Christmas products climbing more than 20 per cent during the week.
Alibaba.com and other Chinese e-commerce platforms have seen increased interest from users in the US since the trade war escalated under the Trump administration. In late April, Alibaba.com briefly became the top shopping app on Apple’s iOS App Store in the US, according to Chinese media outlet Wallstreetcn.com.
