Meg Whitman, president and CEO of eBay Inc, in Mumbai on Thursday. (Fotocorp)

Mumbai, Feb. 23: On her maiden trip to India, Meg Whitman, president and CEO of eBay Inc, has promised that her company will continue to make more investments in the country.

?We will continue to invest in India and hope that in the next five to 10 years, India will be among the top-three countries globally in terms of growth for eBay,? she said. However, she did not reveal the details of her plan.

The Asia-Pacific region has shown the fastest growth, adding 30 million subscribers for eBay in the past years.

?Our user base in the APAC region is growing faster than in the US and the UK. India, China and Korea are some of the countries that will be the focus for us,? she said.

eBay, one of the bigger online auction sites in the world, is becoming more of a fixed-price online trading place.

?Almost 34 per cent of the global merchandise volume now comes from fixed-price items and we are expecting more growth from that section,? she added. The company started in 1995 as an auction site, but more and more people are now using it as an e-commerce site.

Spread across 33 countries covering 150 markets, eBay has more than 181 million users globally. In India, the number is close to 2 million in 240 towns and cities.

eBay?s net revenues stood at $1.329 billion in the fourth quarter of 2005. The numbers for the whole year stood at $4.552 billion. eBay International achieved net revenues of $604.1 million in the fourth quarter.

eBay entered India after acquiring Bazee.com in 2004 for $50 million (Rs 230 crore).

In India, eBay sees growth coming from the small towns and cities. ?But we do hope the broadband connectivity in India improves so that we can reach the unpenetrated market,? Whitman said.

A simpler regulatory and tax structure would also help the market grow, she pointed out. Whitman said the Indian market will see competition from within. ?I foresee competition for eBay India from the domestic market. With equity investment on an upswing in the country, it will be a matter of time before we may face competition from domestic players," she said.