HCM City: E-commerce websites saw turnover increase by 45 per cent last year and investment go up by 30 per cent. In the first 10 months – figures are available only for that period – the sales reported by 839 e-commerce websites were around VNĐ11.6 trillion (US$520 million) compared with VNĐ8.1 trillion in the same period in 2014. A recent survey of 105 websites by the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s e-commerce and information technology department found that 89 per cent of those portals sell products and the rest, services.
Most of them are based in HCM City (44 per cent) or Hà Nội (40 per cent), with 97 per cent belonging to companies. Two per cent are foreign-owned and one per cent, State-owned. Thirteen per cent do business both in the international and domestic markets, eight per cent focus on a single province and three per cent focus completely on foreign markets. Around 62 per cent are on social networks, with Facebook alone accounting for 70 per cent.
Computers, smart phones, electronic and digital products and office equipment are the most popular items bought online, accounting for 23 per cent. Fashion products and accessories also account for 23 per cent. They are followed by real estate (12 per cent), household appliances (10 per cent) and accommodation and tourism (8 per cent).
