As more Asians turn to smartphones, "shopping on the go" is becoming a regional trend. Close to half of such device users in the Asia Pacific have used mobile shopping services, according to a survey by MasterCard.
The survey, conducted between October and December 2014, revealed that 45.6% of smartphone users in 14 markets in the Asia Pacific had used their mobile devise to buy goods or services during the preceding three months. The number has been growing steadily since the credit card company's first survey in 2011, when the result was 26.8%.
China led the pack at 70.1%, followed by India at 62.9% and Taiwan at 62.6%. Figure for Southeast Asian countries were also strong -- Thailand ranked fourth with 58.8% and Indonesia 54.9%. Phenomenal growth was seen in India, Taiwan and Malaysia, where the percentages showed double-digit growth over the past year.
The biggest reason for shopping on mobile phones is simply convenience, as stated by 49.5% of mobile shoppers in the survey. The availability of cheaper handsets and faster internet connections have led to an increase in the number of Internet users. These factors have also contributed to the Asia Pacific smartphone shopping boom. Most countries, except Australia and New Zealand, had a smartphone penetration of over 94%, according to the survey.
Companies in the region are now transforming themselves to meet the growing demand for mobile device commerce. Singapore Telecommunications launched HOOQ, its premium mobile video streaming service in India, Philippines and Thailand this year. Indonesia's Lippo Group announced plans to invest $500 million over three years in the new online mall MatahariMall.com, which is expected to include a mobile e-commerce site.
The MasterCard survey found clothing and fashion accessories to be the most popular. These shopping trends were either the top or second highest-ranked categories in all 14 markets. Mobile applications and daily deal coupons were also in high demand.
Savvy Asian shoppers are also using smartphones to find the best deals, with 44.5% of mobile shoppers saying they had compared prices between brick and mortar retailers and online stores. while 44.2% of respondents had done online research using smartphones before making purchases in physical stores.
"Brands and online shopping portals need to ensure easy and simple ways to browse and pay, as convenience remains paramount to consumers whether they are shopping on their phones or in-store," Raj Dhamodharan, Group Head, Emerging Payments, Asia Pacific, MasterCard said. 
The survey examined over 7000 consumers aged 18 to 64. The number of smartphone users among the respondents was 6369.