The relationship between online retailing and the regional economy

Computer technology is steadily penetrating everyday life, offering many new opportunities. Information technology has enabled different organizations to increase sales and generate additional sources of income. The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of web-based retail on the regional economy of Russia. The research methodology is based on a correlation and regression analysis. The study is based on 85 Russian regions, which are part of 8 districts, for 2016–2020. The study is based on key indicators characterizing web commerce in the regions: share of web sales in total retail sales, share of organizations engaged in web sales, and percentage of the population that purchases goods online. The correlation analysis made it possible to assess the level of correlation both between the studied factors and each of them in relation to the integral indicator of the socio-economic status of the regions. Despite the importance of all the studied factors of e-commerce development for Russia, there are significant differences in their adequacy in the regions, which are combined into districts. The regression modeling performed allowed identifying which factors are the most significant for individual districts of Russia and the country as a whole. The study provides results that characterize the lack of a close relationship between the level of socio-economic development and the share of the population using the Internet for shopping for most regions. The most significant are the business aspects of e-commerce - increasing the share of Internet sales in the total volume of retail sales and the share of organizations engaged in Internet sales. Therefore, the creation of an appropriate business climate and regulatory conditions for the functioning of e-commerce should be a priority in the formation of a strategy for regions’ socio-economic development.