Korea's e-commerce market under siege by AliExpress, Temu 알리 테무에 포위당한 전자상거래

[김우정]

알리익스프레스의 3월 활성사용자는 887만명, 테무는 829만명으로 전년동기대비 114%, 1,508%  증가했습니다.

쿠팡은 1위 자리를 지켰지만 3월 현재 활성사용자(3,086만 명)는 전년 대비 5% 증가하는 데 그쳤습니다.
알리와 테무는 국내에 유한회사를 설립하여 매출,수익 배당계획을 공시하지않을 수도 있습니다.

중국의존도가 높아서 규제가 어렵다면 국내기업에 대한 규제를 풀어 공정경쟁을 해야하지 않을까요?
 
Korea's e-commerce market under siege by AliExpress, Temu
알리 익스프레스, 테무에 포위당하고 있는 한국의 전자상거래 시장

By Lee Min-hyung 이민형 기자 
Posted : 2024-04-07 16:54 Updated : 2024-04-07 17:38
 

Legal system fails to aid domestic players against surge in Chinese platforms
법적 시스템, 중국 플랫폼 급증에 대비한 국내업체 지원실패

Editor’s note
This article is the first in a three-part series on the impacts of Chinese e-commerce platforms' expansion into the Korean market and the responses of local rivals. — ED.
편집자주
이 글은 중국 전자상거래 플랫폼의 한국 시장 진출 효과와 현지 경쟁사의 대응에 대한 3부작 시리즈의 첫 번째 글이다. - ED.

Chinese e-commerce companies are posing a growing threat to Korea's retail ecosystem, as their Korean counterparts lose price competitiveness due to the ultra-low pricing strategy of Chinese players.
중국업체들의 초저가 전략으로 한국 업체들이 가격 경쟁력을 상실하면서 중국 전자상거래 업체들이 한국 유통 생태계에 위협이 커지고 있다.

Besides price competitiveness which is backed by the enormous amounts of capital they possess, Chinese companies enjoy less strict regulations here than their local rivals according to the applicable laws and thus, have advantages in expanding their business here. This has led to calls from local e-commerce platforms for the government to introduce appropriate countermeasures.
중국 기업들은 막대한 자본을 바탕으로 한 가격 경쟁력 외에도 관련 법에 따라 현지 경쟁사보다 덜 엄격한 규제를 받기 때문에 현지에서 사업을 확장하는 데 유리하다. 이에 현지 전자상거래 플랫폼에서는 정부가 적절한 대응책을 내놓아야 한다는 목소리가 나오고 있다.

In recent years, Chinese companies, including AliExpress, Temu and Shein, have exponentially expanded in Korea.
최근 몇 년간 알리익스프레스, 테무, 셰인 등 중국 기업들이 국내에 기하급수적으로 진출했다.

According to data from market tracker, Wiseapp Retail Goods, AliExpress is the nation’s second-most visited e-commerce platform with monthly active users (MAU) registering at 8.87 million in March, up 114 percent from a year earlier. The MAU of Temu soared to 8.29 million, up 1,508 percent since August last year when it started offering its services here.
시장 추적업체 와이즈앱리테일굿즈의 자료에 따르면 알리익스프레스는 3월 월간 활성사용자(MAU)가 887만명으로 전년 동기 대비 114% 증가해 국내에서 두 번째로 많이 방문한 전자상거래 플랫폼이다. 테무의 MAU는 829만명으로 지난해 8월 한국에서 서비스를 시작한 이후 1508% 증가했다.

Coupang, the unwavering leader in Korea's e-commerce market, kept its top spot but its MAU as of March, 30.86 million, was only 5 percent up from the previous year.
한국 전자상거래 시장의 부동의 선두주자인 쿠팡은 1위 자리를 지켰지만 3월 현재 MAU(3,086만 명)는 전년 대비 5% 증가하는 데 그쳤다.

The robust growth of AliExpress is driven by its cheaper product sales strategy than its Korean counterparts. For example, Maxim Mocha Gold instant coffee sells at $30.51 (41,000 won) for 360 packs on AliExpress, but the same product is priced at 47,200 won on Coupang.
알리익스프레스의 견조한 성장은 한국 제품보다 저렴한 제품 판매 전략에 힘입은 것이다. 예를 들어, 맥심 모카 골드 인스턴트 커피는 알리익스프레스에서 360팩에 30.51달러(4만1000원)에 판매되지만, 같은 제품은 쿠팡에서 47,200원에 판매된다.

For this reason, Coupang and a group of other local retailers such as Shinsegae and Lotte, are paying close attention to the rapid rise of Chinese e-commerce firms here.
이 때문에 쿠팡을 비롯한 신세계, 롯데 등 현지 유통업체들은 중국 전자상거래 업체들의 급부상에 촉각을 곤두세우고 있다.

“The influx of Chinese low-priced products is weakening the competitiveness of Korean firms,” said Jun Bo-hee, senior researcher at the analysis & forecasting department of the Korea International Trade Association.
Experts say the current relevant regulations are rather favorable to the Chinese newcomers than Korean companies.
무역협회 전보희 분석예측부 선임연구원은 "중국산 저가 제품의 유입으로 한국 기업의 경쟁력이 약화되고 있다"고 말했다. 전문가들은 현재 관련 규제가 한국 기업보다는 오히려 중국 신인들에게 유리하다고 말한다.

“Many global platform firms are not obliged to abide by several domestic laws – such as rules on corporate tax –because of legal loopholes, so local firms face reverse discrimination when doing business here,” Lee Yang-kee, professor of international trade at Pusan National University, said. Some also raise the possibility that the Chinese companies may adopt a strategy used by other global firms: opening a limited or limited-liability company here. This allows them not to provide public notices on their sales, revenues and dividend plans, so there's no legal way to grasp their exact sales and revenue performance although many such companies release dubious sales data here. Korean counterparts argue this is reverse discrimination, as they have to pay an enormous amount of corporate taxes and other taxes transparently under the local acts.
이양기 부산대 국제통상학과 교수는 "법적 허점 때문에 많은 글로벌 플랫폼 기업들이 법인세에 관한 규칙 등 국내 여러 법을 지킬 의무가 없어 국내 기업들이 국내에서 사업을 할 때 역차별을 받는다"고 말했다. 어떤 이들은 중국 회사들이 다른 글로벌 기업들이 사용하는 전략을 채택할 가능성도 제기하는데 바로 국내에 유한회사나 유한책임회사를 설립하는 것이다. 그렇게 함으로써 그들은 매출과 수익 그리고 배당 계획에 대한 공시를 하지 않을 수 있기 때문에 이러한 많은 회사들이 국내에서 석연치 않은 매출 자료를 내고 있지만 그들의 정확한 매출과 수익 실적을 파악할 법적 방법은 없다. 한국의 상대방들은 이것이 역차별이라고 주장하는데 그들은 국내법에 의거해서 투명하게 막대한 양의 법인세와 기타 세금을 납부해야 하기 때문이다.

"We do not have to release any official earnings data since it has been less than a year after we set up a branch office here," a spokesperson at AliExpress Korea told The Korea Times.
알리익스프레스 코리아의 한 대변인은 코리아 타임즈에 "우리는 이곳에 지사를 설립한 지 1년도 되지 않았기 때문에 공식적인 수익 자료를 발표할 필요가 없다"고 했다.

AliExpress Korea CEO Ray Zhang speaks during a press conference in Seoul, Dec. 6, 2023. Courtesy of AliExpress Korea 알리익스프레스 코리아 최고경영자 레이 장이 2023년 12월 6일 서울에서 기자회견을 하고 있다. 알리익스프레스 코리아 제공

Experts and industry insiders warn that these legal loopholes threaten to erode the foundation of fair competition, leaving Korean firms vulnerable as the primary casualties in the face of expanding Chinese e-commerce giants.
전문가들과 업계 관계자들은 이러한 법적허점이 공정한 경쟁의 기반을 잠식할 위험이 있으며, 중국 전자상거래 대기업들이 팽창하는 상황에서 한국기업들이 1차적인 피해자로 취약하게 만든다고 경고한다.

In response, the government is stepping up regulatory pressure against the Chinese firms by establishing a task force to monitor any illegal acts conducted by them here. The Fair Trade Commission is also moving to introduce a regulatory measure by mandating them to designate local agents who can respond promptly to any customer complaints here.
이에 정부는 중국 기업들의 불법 행위를 감시하기 위해 태스크포스를 설치하는 등 중국 기업들에 대한 규제 압박을 강화하고 있다. 공정거래위원회도 중국 기업들이 국내에서 어떠한 고객 불만에도 신속하게 대응할 수 있는 현지 대리점을 지정하도록 의무화하는 등 규제 방안을 도입하려는 움직임을 보이고 있다.

However, experts said that this is not enough to put the brakes on the growth momentum of Chinese players here.
다만 이 정도로는 국내 중국 기업들의 성장 모멘텀에 제동을 걸기에는 역부족이라는 게 전문가들의 평가다.

“The Korean government and regulatory authorities cannot slap tighter sanctions just like those from the European Union, due to Korea’s strong trade reliance on China,” Lee at Pusan National University said. “There stands a possibility that the Chinese government offers subsidies to AliExpress and other platforms, so they can tap deeper into the Korean market until they can exhibit dominant influences.”
이 교수는 중국에 대한 무역의존도가 높은 한국 정부와 규제당국이 유럽연합(EU)처럼 강력한 제재를 가할 수는 없다며 중국 정부가 알리익스프레스 등에 보조금을 지급해 영향력이 커질 때까지 한국 시장을 더 깊이 파고들 가능성도 있다고 말했다.

Some urge the government to revise rules on foreign direct purchases, in a bid to protect local firms and slow down the rapid inroads of cheap Chinese products here.
일부에서는 국내 기업들을 보호하고 값싼 중국 제품의 국내 진출을 늦추기 위해 정부가 외국 직구에 대한 규칙을 개정해야 한다고 촉구한다.

“Korea has lax taxation rules on individuals’ foreign direct purchases,” Jun at the trade association said. “Korea charges taxes for each foreign direct purchase worth over $150. But there is no rule as to accumulated annual purchases, so individuals can engage in a buying spree of Chinese imported products, which is not the case for China. The country has a tighter rule of imposing taxes on any foreign direct purchases whose accumulated value tops 4.8 million won each year.”
무역협회 전 선임연구원은 "한국은 개인의 해외직접구매에 대한 과세 규정이 느슨하다"며 "한국은 150달러 이상의 해외직접구매에 대해 세금을 매긴다"고 말했다. 그러나 연간 누적 구매에 대한 규정이 없어 개인들이 중국산 수입품을 사재기할 수 있는데 중국은 그렇지 않다. 한국은 연간 누적 가치가 480만 원을 넘는 해외직접구매에 대해 세금을 부과하는 규정이 더 엄격하다.

Others call for the need to toughen tariffs.
다른 사람들은 관세를 강화해야 한다고 요구하고 있다.

“AliExpress will start charging service fees to customers after expanding its user base here with its super-cheap sales strategy,” Kim Dae-jong, professor of business administration at Sejong University, said.
김대종 세종대 경영학과 교수는 "알리익스프레스는 초저가 판매 전략으로 국내 이용자층을 확대한 뒤 고객에게 서비스 요금을 부과하기 시작할 것"이라고 말했다.

“My suggestion is to impose more tariffs on Chinese goods,” the professor said. “If we leave the status quo unchanged, more Korean companies will fall prey in the end.”
이 교수는 "내 제안은 중국산 제품에 더 많은 관세를 부과하자는 것"이라며 "현 상태를 그대로 둔다면 결국 더 많은 한국 기업이 먹잇감이 될 것"이라고 말했다.

Industry officials say Korea should also focus more on easing complex regulatory hurdles against local players, rather than taking steps to tighten regulations on Chinese companies.
업계 관계자들은 한국도 중국 기업에 대한 규제를 강화하는 조치를 취하기보다는 국내 기업에 대한 복잡한 규제 장애물을 완화하는 데 더 집중해야 한다고 말한다.

“If we step up regulations on foreign firms, this may create a side effect in other parts of the industry or even diplomatic circles,” an official at a major retail firm here said on condition of anonymity. “A more realistic countermeasure is to deregulate existing rules on Korean e-commerce firms, so they can gain more competitiveness amid the escalating rivalry against the Chinese platforms.”
익명을 요구한 국내 주요 유통업체 관계자는 "외국 기업에 대한 규제를 강화하면 업계 다른 곳이나 심지어 외교가에서도 부작용이 발생할 수 있다,"며 "더 현실적인 대응책은 한국 전자상거래 업체에 대한 기존 규제를 풀어 중국 플랫폼과의 경쟁이 치열해지는 가운데 경쟁력을 더 높일 수 있도록 하는 것"이라고 말했다.

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