Amazon 'to enter S-E Asia through Singapore'

Amazon has plans to expand to South-east Asia, and there are signs the online retail giant is doing so through Singapore, Techcrunch reported yesterday.

Amazon is acquiring assets and hiring new employees in Singapore, the tech news website said, citing two sources close to the company.

There has been no official announcement by Amazon.

The report said Amazon may debut its Prime delivery service and its AmazonFresh grocery service, perhaps as soon as early 2017.

Amazon's possible foray into South-east Asia comes soon after aggressive moves to enter India and China.

It started offering its Prime free-shipping service in China last month.

Prime gives members in the United States perks like free delivery and access to a growing library of videos and music.

The US company has also pumped US$3 billion (S$4.2 billion) more into its Indian e-commerce operation.

Amazon's entry to the region, if it materialises, may heat up competition in the online retail market.

Yesterday, Singapore-based e-commerce company Lazada announced that it will acquire Redmart, an online grocery retailer.

Sometimes called South-east Asia's Amazon, Lazada was started by Rocket Internet.

Chinese e-commerce leader Alibaba bought a controlling stake in Lazada in April this year in a US$1 billion deal.

chuimin@sph.com.sg

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