HCMC leads Vietnam E-commerce Index in 2018

The Vietnam E-business Index 2018 Report was officially announced in Hanoi on March 14 within the framework of the Vietnam Online Business Forum 2018. (Photo: infonet.vn)

Accordingly, Ho Chi Minh City stood on the first place of the rank of Vietnam E-commerce Index in 2018. The city recorded an aggregate score of 82.1 points, a rise of 3.5 points year-on-year. Sub-indexes put the city much higher than the national average, especially in Infrastructure and Human Resources and Business-to-Business (B2B) transactions.

Meanwhile, Hanoi was second, with 79.8 points, 4 points higher than last year, followed by Hai Phong city, Da Nang city, and Binh Duong province. The distance between Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi and these localities, however, is substantial.

The average score was 37.5 points. The difference between the average of the lowest five localities (27.5 points) and the top five (64.3) points was 36.7 points.

Despite the efforts of State management agencies, organizations and enterprises to narrow the gap around the country, results fell short of expectations and bridging the digital divide continues to be a major challenge for Vietnam.

Dang Hoang Hai, Director General of the E-commerce and Digital Economy Department at the Ministry of Industry and Trade said that e-commerce has grown quickly in the 20 years since the Internet arrived in Vietnam and has become increasingly popular for businesses and the community. Growth in e-commerce has always remained above 20 per cent and was 25 per cent in 2017, which is high globally.

Some experts have forecast that growth of over 25 per cent can be sustained during the 2018-2020 period.