TOKYO - A NEW Internet shopping mall is opening in China next month that will take payments in the widely used China UnionPay cards for Japanese products, company officials said on Friday.

The electronic shopping site Buy-J.com will sell gadgets, clothing and cosmetics from about 100 Japanese companies, aiming 4 billion yen (S$63 million) in sales in the first year, said Mr Ryuichi Kobayashi, spokesman for Sumitomo Mitsui Card a credit card company that tied up with China UnionPay.

It would be the first of its kind that allows settlements with the Chinese cards, hoping to cash in on the growing interest in Japanese electronics goods, fashion and food among Chinese consumers, he said.

Some 1.8 billion UnionPay cards - which include both credit and debit cards - have been issued in China, far more plentiful than credit cards like Visa.

The number of Chinese who use the Internet is estimated at some 250 million.

Among those considering opening shop at Buy-J.com are electronics retailer Yodobashi Camera, drugstore chain Matsumoto Kiyoshi, children's clothing maker Narumiya International and mail-order company Cecile, Mr Kobayashi said.

Chinese will be able to buy the products through the Net and pay with their cards to have the products shipped to them, said Shota Ko of SBI VeriTrans, a Tokyo-based e-commerce company, which will run the site. -- AP