A new report shows that China is likely to surpass the United States as the largest Internet retailing market by 2015.

The report, buy the Boston Consulting Group, says e-commerce in China is growing exponentially, because of the high number of Internet users, the low cost of shipping and a fondness for consumerism in that country.

It says that in 2006 less than 10 percent of China’s urban population shopped online, but by 2015 it will rise to 44 percent. By that time, most of China’s online shoppers will spend an average of $980 a year, twice what they are spending today.

The report says a situation that is unusual in China is that Internet access in the country has far outpaced the reach of the top physical retailers.

It says that up to a quarter of e-commerce demand in China is for products that consumers cannot find in physical stores, a circumstance unique in China because of its size.