European e-commerce sales continue to grow, but growth is becoming increasingly slower

European e-commerce sales continued to grow in 2022, according to a new report by Ecommerce Europe and Eurocommerce. Thanks to 6 percent growth, B2C sales reached 899 billion euros. However, growth is slowing down.

Indeed, in 2021, the growth rate was still at 12 percent, the platforms reported. Several elements play into the differences between 2021 and 2022. For instance, inflation and the effects of the war in Ukraine impacted consumers' purchasing power. In some of the countries surveyed, higher product prices were the biggest driver of higher e-commerce sales.

To give a better picture of the situation in 2022, the two companies included an inflation adjustment in the report. Without higher prices, Europe's e-commerce sales fell 2 percent. That decline is unprecedented. The only regions without a decline were Eastern Europe and Southern Europe.