The next three years will remain a golden period for the development of digital trade, especially in the Asia Pacific region

Global digitalization has been enhanced, the pandemic has accelerated the digitalization process of consumers and businesses, and it is difficult to reverse the habit of online consumption once it is formed. Meanwhile, ASEAN has become China’s largest trade partner thanks to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). In Southeast Asia, cross-border e-commerce platforms such as Lazada have emerged. They rush at China to recruit Chinese businesses on a large scale, hoping to import more Chinese goods to meet the needs of local consumers.

Digital technologies enable global sellers to participate in global trade without any barriers to entry. The continuous improvement of digital infrastructure will effectively help remove two major constraints affecting cross-border trade: logistics and payments. Blockchain technology is also creating a new space of imagination for digital trade.

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will promote regional cooperation, and facilitate regional digital trade in five aspects: removing tariff barriers, establishing flexible rules of origin, promoting e-commerce, enhancing trade facilitation, and focusing on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and technical cooperation.