HCMC – Vietnam’s digital economy may take the lead in Southeast Asia with average growth of 31% a year and reach US$49 billion by 2025, said a report by Google, Temasek and Bain & Company.

Vietnam’s online retail sales hit US$16.4 billion in 2022, accounting for 7.5% of the country’s total retail sales of consumer goods and services. The rate is expected to rise to 10% by 2025.

The nation was the third-largest digital economy in the region with US$23 billion in 2022, after Indonesia and Thailand, said the Department of E-Commerce and Digital Economy under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, citing data from the report.

A survey conducted by the department showed that around 78% of Vietnamese internet users purchased goods through e-commerce platforms in 2022.

The figures reflected international optimism about the Southeast Asian country’s digital economy and e-commerce growth.

According to the department, Vietnam was officially hooked up to the internet in 1997. Over the past 20 years, the internet has grown rapidly in the country and has become an important shopping channel for consumers.