As trade volume and importance grow across APEC, improving efficiency has become critical to sustaining trade growth. One key solution? Paperless trade platforms – systems that enable the digitisation and electronic exchange of information between relevant parties in international trade, in place of paper-based documents.
Our latest study, developed in collaboration with the APEC Policy Support Unit, investigates how paperless trade platforms are being used across eight APEC economies: Canada, Chile, China, Korea, Mexico, Peru, Singapore, and the United States.
While the benefits of digital trade facilitation are well-established, this study fills an important gap in the literature by capturing exporters’ first-hand experiences with 8 public and 31 commercial paperless platforms across these APEC economies.
The results are compelling:
- Adoption of paperless trade platforms reduced exporting firms’ total trade costs by 3.8% on average.
- In 2021 alone, paperless trade platforms drove higher trade volumes in the eight economies and contributed USD 383 billion in value added – equivalent to 0.8% of their aggregate GDP.
However, there is still considerable room for growth, especially for commercial platforms. The study identifies several critical barriers to broader adoption and long-term platform sustainability. APEC economies differ in their level of readiness to maximise paperless trade adoption. Switching costs and a lack of digital skills remain major obstacles, particularly for small and medium-sized exporters. While growing user adoption can strengthen commercial platforms, they must also demonstrate commercial viability and generate value for a broad base of stakeholders.
To accelerate paperless trade adoption and ensure platform sustainability, APEC economies should focus on two strategic priorities:
- Promoting the business case for paperless trade adoption
- Fostering interoperability and integration within the paperless trade ecosystem
By scaling paperless trade adoption and platform interoperability across the region, APEC economies can unlock new levels of efficiency, resilience, and opportunity in cross-border trade.
To find out more, download the full report.
