(by Geck Finn)

Online auction firm, eBay, has stated that it is looking to its e-payments unit, PayPal, for future growth as its merchandise sales trends start to reflect those of mainstream retailers, according to Silicon.com. To this end, eBay plans to build out PayPal’s business to reflect eBay’s global footprint while encouraging its customers to use PayPal for generic, non-auction payments. eBay’s second-quarter profits doubled after strong growth in international sales, which grew by 76 per cent to USD 273 million in the quarter. The firm’s US revenues conversely rose by 32 per cent to USD 319 million, prompting speculation of full-year revenues of USD 319 billion.

Analysts however warn that PayPal may have difficulty expanding into countries with low online payment or Internet usage rates, such as India or China. eBay’s European auction sites are performing strongly, some with double-digit growth, and Germany, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland and the Netherlands are seen as having the strongest potential. In the US, 91 per cent eBay’s auctions offer PayPal as a payment option, and globally, PayPal was used for 37.5 per cent of all eBay transactions in Q2, when the number of PayPal accounts grew 62 per cent to 50.4 million and USD4.4 billion was processed via PayPal.