Amazon Bets Mexico Street-Market Bargain Hunters Will Go Digital

The growth potential for online shopping in Mexico, where consumers are more likely to scour shopping malls and street markets for goods, has put the country on the radar of the world’s biggest retailers.

In June, Amazon.com Inc. began operating in Latin America’s second-largest economy -- where online retail sales, excluding travel and event tickets, are seen growing 30 percent to $5.7 billion this year, according to eMarketer. While Web-based sales from Wal-Mart de Mexico SAB, El Puerto de Liverpool SAB and others represent less than 2 percent of all purchases, more than 15 million more Mexicans will gain Internet access by 2018, eMarketer said.