E-commerce has developed rapidly in the southern economic hub. (Photo: baodautu.vn) HCM City (VNA) - HCM City is gearing up to develop e-commerce infrastructure and make e-commerce an economic spearhead contributing to its economic growth, the municipal Department of Industry and Trade has said.
E-commerce has developed rapidly in the southern economic hub in recent years, with total online spending growing by more than 13.8 percent annually. E-commerce platforms have also become an important sales channel for local businesses.
According to the department’s statistics, about 5 percent of enterprises in the city sold products on these platforms.
Meanwhile, shoppers engaged more in e-marketplaces, with people of all ages flocking to e-commerce platforms. Some 62.5 percent of internet users bought products online, and nearly 18 percent of local consumers chose online payments.
The department is carrying out a wide range of measures to shape up e-marketspaces, which need State support in planning, land, and finance to build logistics infrastructure such as warehouses, access roads, and suitable online payments.
It has proposed developing HCM City into a logistics service hub in the south, by zoning off areas for seven logistics centres, including Cat Lai, Linh Trung, Hiep Phuoc, Tan Kien, Cu Chi, Long Binh, and a high-tech zone.
The department will also evaluate local production and exports to determine the city’s export situation via e-commerce platforms, so as to recommend strategic orientations for the local authorities to build an action plan to expand exports to 2030.
Optimisation of delivery needed
According to Tiki.vn founder and CEO Tran Thai Son, shopping and transaction demands on e-commerce platforms have shot up in recent times, particularly in HCM City, where they are double and even triple national levels.
As the size of Vietnam’s e-commerce market grows by an average of 20-30 percent annually, one in five vehicles on the road is delivering goods, he said.
More businesses and local people have engaged in e-commerce delivery services, so it is necessary to develop transport infrastructure for e-commerce development, he stressed.
Son said that without improvements, e-commerce will barely be able to flourish.
In the context of complex developments from COVID-19, Business-to-Business electronic commerce (B2B e-commerce) has been increasingly favoured by enterprises, since it allows them to find suppliers and customers around the clock.
Along with warehouses, planning for transport infrastructure is crucial to optimise product delivery, Son said./.
VNA
