Latin America Turns to E-commerce, As the Pandemic Restricts Travel

Latin American is increasingly embracing e-commerce, as the COVID-19 pandemic restricts traveling. According to a study by tech investment firm Atlantico, e-commerce use is growing in Mexico and Brazil at similar rates to India and China.

The growth in e-commerce is proof that tech penetration is accelerating across the region. In Brazil alone, the share of e-commerce in total sales increased from 7% to 12% in a space of 10 weeks. Data from Vtex, LatAm’s leading e-commerce platform, shows an increase in store sales as new merchants are going online.

“Across LatAm, we saw a similar explosion in food delivery growth, including from new users searching for services,” says the report. Food delivery apps, such as Guiabolso and iFood,  are also seeing a sudden increase in users.

“Tech penetration is at an all-time high. LatAm’s digital landscape is growing exponentially and there are big opportunities for growth compared to developed economies,” says the report.

“Social media, e-commerce, and digital media have penetrated Latin Americans’ daily lives and there’s no going back”.

However, the region is still a long way away from building a strong tech talent pool in order to keep pace with the demand for technology-based services.

Considering the report, the shortage of tech talent is a common scene across the region. Brazil and Mexico, the region’s large economies, lag most of their peers in the eastern world, with just 2.5 million and 2.6 million graduates, respectively.