Digital marketplace noon has signed a new partnership with eBay to give customers in the region the opportunity to buy products from the US and other parts of the globe, it was announced on Tuesday.

As part of the partnership, noon – which is backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and a group of Gulf investors - will fulfil all eBay orders made on noon and deliver the products directly to the customer’s doorstep.

“Noon is connecting the region with the global e-commerce market through our partnership with eBay,” said noon founder Mohamed Alabbar. “With this, we are offering our customers access to products that are not otherwise readily available in the region.”

Alabbar added that, as a homegrown Middle Eastern brand, noon was careful to “listen to our customers and tailor the online retail experience to suit their needs. Our partnership with eBay opens a whole new world of shopping experience.”

Noon powered by eBay will be available in the second half of 2018 in both the UAE and Saudi Arabia through a dedicated app, as well as via mobile and desktop.

Products purchased through noon and shipped from overseas can also be easily returned to noon with a full refund option, based on terms and conditions.

As part of the partnership, noon and eBay will also explore joint opportunities in marketing, know-how and best practices sharing in a bid to help grow online shopping in the region, noon said in a statement.

“E-commerce continuously evolves, and this partnership guarantees noon stays on top of the trends and consumer preferences,” Alabbar added.

According to the ‘Middle East B2C E-Commerce Market 2018,’ combined e-commerce sales are expected to more than double between 2017 and 2020 to reach $20 billion.

The announcement from noon comes about seven months after another regional e-commerce giant, Souq.com, launched Amazon Global Store, which allows customers in the UAE to choose from products from US-based Amazon.com, in English or Arabic, and pay in AED.