Year: 2026

The internationalisation of online stores is accelerating: 55 per cent sell abroad, many will start doing so this year

E-commerce in Finland grew faster than other retail trade last year, and more and more shops are seeking growth abroad: 55 per cent of them already sell abroad and a large number are planning to start doing the same this year. At the same time, online stores recognise insufficient marketing resources and a skills shortage as barriers to growth, and therefore strive to improve their marketing and develop technical solutions and new AI tools.

Recent Finnish Commerce Federation survey: domestic e-commerce grew by 5.3 per cent in 2025 – social media still guides the purchasing behaviour of older age groups

Last year, domestic e-commerce managed to grow slightly faster than foreign e-commerce in Finland. At the same time, Temu has become the seventh most popular online store in Finland, and one in ten euros spent on online purchases ends up in China. Social media already influences the purchasing decisions of more than half of Finns aged 18–64.

The government is finally intervening in the volume of junk

The Finnish Commerce Federation thanks the working group for its proposed solutions to the challenges posed by low-cost online platform imports, as presented in the group’s report, and thanks the ministers for their strong support in addressing these issues. The Finnish Commerce Federation considers increasing the responsibility of online platforms to be the most effective proposed solution. It is essential to implement the proposed measures quickly.

Commerce is starting to grow – the brake on consumption is easing up

The sales volume and turnover of the retail sector have been growing since September. However, employment in the retail sector continues to fall. The Finnish Commerce Federation predicts that sales will grow moderately this and next year. At the same time, however, it estimates that up to 12,000-13,000 jobs in the sector will be lost by 2027 when compared to 2024. Consumers' caution is slowing down the recovery of demand, and the Finnish Commerce Federation is proposing an increase in the tax credit for household expenses and a temporary removal of transfer tax to accelerate consumption.

The number of parcels from China increased strongly in 2025

Customs' statistics* show that the number of consignments from outside the EU continued to increase sharply in 2025. The number increased by 46 per cent from the previous year – from 27.8 million consignments to 40.5 million. The commerce sector expects the government to take significant measures to address the unhealthy competition.

The commerce sector is clearly the largest summer employer in the economy – the search for this year's summer jobs is ongoing

The commerce sector will once again employ tens of thousands of young people this summer. Summer jobs offer young people the opportunity to earn money, gain work experience and take their first steps on a career path in a diverse working environment in commerce. Young people’s experiences of working in commerce are positive: when compared to other sectors, the sector receives the best ratings for the working atmosphere and above-average ratings for orientation.