Vietnam tops region in online cross-border purchase volume

Thailand came in second with 75 purchases per year on average, followed by Singapore and the Philippines with 58 each, according to a study on cross-border e-commerce recently released by Singaporean logistics provider Ninja Van Group and its parent company, DPDgroup.

The market study covered 9,000 participants from six Southeast Asian countries: Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines.

A large proportion of Vietnamese orders were fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) products, mainly clothing and footwear.

Fifty-nine percent of Vietnamese respondents said they had shopped and placed orders many times on international e-commerce websites. This was the second highest rate in the region, after Singapore with 60 percent.

Vietnam is one of the countries with high e-commerce potential “thanks to its sustainable and clear growth in recent years,” said Phan Xuan Dung, sales director of Ninja Van Vietnam.

The report found 76 percent of Vietnamese respondents saying the main reason for shopping online was saving money.

Several other forecasts on the development of online business in Vietnam have also painted a positive outlook for the industry.

According to German data portal Statista, Vietnam is expected to become the second largest e-commerce market in Southeast Asia after Indonesia, before 2025.

Vietnam currently has an average purchase level (ABS) of $26, which is higher than Thailand ($25) and Indonesia ($18).

According to British marketing and advertising agency We Are Social, the number of Vietnamese people making online purchases will cross 51 million this year, up 13.5 percent over the previous year.

The total expected spending on online shopping this year is $12.42 billion.

The e-Conomy Southeast Asia 2021 report by Google, Temasek and Bain & Co. predicted that Vietnam would surpass Thailand by 2025 to become the second biggest internet economy in Southeast Asia at $57 billion, behind Indonesia at $146 billion.

The development of the e-commerce market has become a fertile ground for logistics businesses to expand their operations. According to an assessment by delivery service provider J&T Express, the online shopping habits of Vietnamese people developed strongly during the pandemic period and these have been sustained since.

The demand for goods on e-commerce platforms is high not only in big cities but also in rural areas, it found.