Articles
DOI DOI: 10.62441/actainnovations.vi.752

CROSS-BORDER E-COMMERCE AT THE DIGITAL TRADE FRONTIER: A BIBLIOMETRIC REVIEW AND RESEARCH AGENDA FOR EMERGING BORDER ECONOMIES

Huy Hoang Doan1, Thi My Linh Tran, Thi Huong Dinh
  1. 1 Thuongmai University

Abstract

This paper maps the intellectual structure and thematic evolution of cross-border e-commerce (CBEC) research from 2016 to 2025 and develops a Vietnam-focused research agenda for border-economy studies. A bibliometric review was conducted on 749 Scopus-indexed documents retrieved through a Boolean search of five CBEC-related keyword variants and screened following the PRISMA 2020 protocol. The analysis combines performance analysis, science mapping, and thematic evolution using Biblioshiny and VOSviewer. CBEC research has expanded rapidly, with an annual growth rate of 44.73% and a clear inflection point in 2021. China dominates the field, contributing 65.29% of publications, but its international co-authorship rate remains modest at 17.79%. Six thematic clusters were identified, with a motor-theme triad centred on CBEC, blockchain, and big data. The thematic evolution shows a shift from logistics, platform efficiency, and transaction mechanisms toward behavioural, regulatory, and data-driven concerns. Emerging frontiers include purchase intention, digital trade, live-streaming commerce, blockchain-enabled traceability, and policy frameworks for digitalised cross-border exchange. The study is limited to English-language documents indexed in Scopus. Future research should cross-validate the findings using Web of Science and CNKI and apply semantic topic modelling to multilingual datasets. Five Vietnam-focused directions are proposed, covering smart border gates, consumer trust, live-streaming commerce, blockchain-enabled traceability, and digital trade agreements. This study contributes to cross-border e-commerce scholarship by linking global bibliometric patterns with a context-sensitive research agenda for emerging border economies. By using Vietnam as a strategic empirical context, the paper reframes cross-border e-commerce as an institutionally embedded form of digital trade shaped by technological infrastructure, border governance, platform ecosystems, and consumer behaviour. This approach extends prior bibliometric studies by moving from descriptive mapping toward a policy-relevant and theoretically informed research agenda.

How to Cite

Doan, H. H., Tran, T. M. L., & Dinh, T. H. (2026). CROSS-BORDER E-COMMERCE AT THE DIGITAL TRADE FRONTIER: A BIBLIOMETRIC REVIEW AND RESEARCH AGENDA FOR EMERGING BORDER ECONOMIES. ACTA INNOVATIONS, 61, 140–157. https://doi.org/10.62441/actainnovations.vi.752
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