China’s largest retailer JD.com has announced plans to sell £2 billion of UK goods to Chinese consumers in the next three years, following a deal with the British government’s Department of International Trade (DIT).

The agreement comes as the DIT wants to make it easier for British companies to access the Chinese e-commerce market through JD.com. Prime Minister Theresa May met with JD chairman and CEO Richard Liu to discuss the relationship between the two countries.

The number of UK brands on JD has doubled over the last two years, with sales in 2017 growing 100 per cent year-on-year. In order to promote even greater sales of British goods, JD will launch special campaigns for seasonal products and undertake other activities to give brands more opportunities to reach Chinese consumers.

Richard Burn, director-general of DIT China, said: “Many British brands recognise the huge potential of China’s enormous e-commerce market. JD truly understands what Chinese consumers want and has the resources to help British brands ensure success in the region. We’re looking forward to working with JD to bring more British brands to China in the future.”

Winston Cheng, president of international at JD.com, added: “We’re pleased to be working with DIT to make it easier and more convenient for British brands to enter the Chinese market. We’ve seen rapid growth in demand for British products from our consumers in recent years, and will look to showcase the ‘Best of Britain’ on our platform even more through this agreement.”

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