Since many of the world's leading industrial, retailing and IT companies rely heavily on suppliers in the region, the potential is clearly immense. Goldman Sachs, the US investment bank, says the Asia-Pacific region is probably about two years behind the US in B2B, but should grow just as fast once it catches up. One of the virtues of the internet and B2B activity, however, is that it promotes collaboration, not a traditional strength of Asian business. In these early days of B2B, many established and dotcom companies are setting up overlapping trading and information exchanges.
Consolidation is thus inevitable.
Companies such as Samsung Corporation in South Korea, and Japan's Mitsubishi Corporation and Itochu are among those at the forefront of Asia's e-procurement activity, recognising the need to ensure their trading business is not snatched away by new online competition. They have been streamlining their purchasing activities and setting up a variety of e-marketplaces. The small businesses that predominate in many Asian industrial sectors are also finding it difficult to adapt to such new concepts as e- procurement. Half of them will probably not even have thought about e-business. Goldman Sachs expects Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan to be in the forefront of Asian-Pacific B2B development.