Sales increased by 35.8%, and the US social commerce market is recovering

U.S. social commerce sales are expected to grow 35.8% to $ 36.62 billion in 2021 , a slight slowdown from the 38.9% sales surge in 2020 .

The US social commerce market is worth $351.65 billion

The New York-based company said that despite strong growth, the U.S. social commerce market will be about one-tenth the size of China's -- reaching $351.65 billion in 2021. eMarketer expects social commerce to account for just 4% of the U.S. retail e-commerce market.

The firm’s first forecast shows Facebook as the No. 1 social commerce platform in the U.S. It predicts that 22.3% of U.S. internet users, or 56.1 million people aged 14 and over, will make at least one purchase on Facebook in 2021.

Meanwhile , 12.9% of internet users, or 32.4 million people, will make a purchase on Instagram, compared to 5.6% of internet users, or 13.9 million people, on Pinterest.

Of course, another reason China leads in social commerce is the sheer number of social buyers in the country. In 2021, eMarketer projects that 424.4 million people aged 14 and over in China will make at least one social commerce purchase in a calendar year, compared to just 90.2 million in the United States.

Spending momentum strongest in the Western U.S.

As for consumer spending, U.S. consumer spending remained solid in June, with most consumers spending more than a year ago.

According to the Visa U.S. Spending Momentum Index (SMI) , in June 2021, the Visa SMI was 111.7, down 11.6 points from the May reading of 123.3. At its current level, the Visa SMI means that 53% of consumers are spending more now than they did a year ago, and 47% are spending the same or less.

Compared to June 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic , 51% of consumers are spending more, slightly lower than the 52% of consumers who spent more in May. This means that although the SMI slowed month-on-month, the actual slowdown in the pace of consumer spending was not significant.

Consumer spending continues to hold up well, and the spending recovery continues to broaden across all regions of the country . While spending momentum is broadening, it remains uneven across regions of the country. The SMI in the Midwest continues to lag the rest of the country, with a June SMI reading of 109.5.

For the second consecutive month, consumption momentum was among the strongest in the region at 115.9, as the region's recovery lagged this time last year .

When the Visa SMI rises above 100, consumer spending momentum is gaining; when it is below 100, spending momentum is losing momentum as fewer consumers are spending more compared to the previous year. The index is adjusted for day of the week, month, holidays, and broad annual trends, and these seasonal adjustments are revised annually.

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