Vietnam logistics costs hit 17% of GDP amid digital shift

Logistics costs in Vietnam currently account for approximately 16.8% to 17% of the nation's GDP, a figure significantly higher than the 10% to 11% average seen in developed economies. According to the Vietnam Logistics Business Association (VLA), these high costs place substantial pressure on corporate profit margins and the global competitiveness of Vietnamese goods.

Traditional manual operations are cited as a primary cause of inefficiency. For instance, Smartlog reports that manual processes can require 5 to 10 minutes to coordinate a single vehicle, over 30 daily phone calls to track cargo, and up to five days for freight reconciliation cycles.

To address these bottlenecks, companies are turning to digital transformation and automation. Smartlog has developed a technological ecosystem including transport management (STM), warehouse management (SWM), and order management (SOM). By partnering with FPT Cloud to utilize cloud computing and AI, the company aims to automate routing and coordination, reducing vehicle dispatch times from several hours to just a few minutes.