WASHINGTON, United States (CMC)—A new report on Tuesday suggests that international trade that is ordered or delivered online has quintupled in two decades in Latin America and the Caribbean to nearly US$90 billion and is rapidly becoming a powerful engine of growth across the region.

The report released by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the World Trade Organization (WTO), and the World Bank Group says that digital trade is creating new opportunities for businesses, workers, and entrepreneurs while helping countries compete in an increasingly digital global economy.

The report titled ”Digital Trade in Latin America and the Caribbean: Connecting Markets, Powering Growth” examines how digital technologies are reshaping trade across the region and identifies policies needed to unlock their full potential and boost growth and competitiveness.

The region’s exports of digitally delivered services nearly quintupled from US$18.5 billion in 2005 to US$87.7 billion in 2024, underscoring the growing importance of digitally delivered services to the region’s trade performance and economic growth.

“Latin America and the Caribbean countries have substantially increased their exports of digitally delivered services in recent decades, but there is still significant potential to expand them further,” said Fabrizio Opertti, manager of the productivity, trade and innovation sector at the IDB.

“To realise this untapped potential and boost productivity, countries across the region need to improve connectivity, modernise regulatory frameworks, streamline and digitalise border procedures, reduce information barriers through stronger trade promotion, and strengthen the digital capabilities of firms and workers.”

According to the report, digital services are lowering barriers to international markets, reducing costs, accelerating innovation, and improving resilience. It said that digital platforms are enabling small businesses, entrepreneurs, and women-led firms to reach customers worldwide, while advances in artificial intelligence and other technologies are creating new possibilities for cross-border trade in goods and services.

The report underscores major opportunities for expansion since the region only captured two per cent of global exports of digitally delivered services in 2024.

The report also points to a promising opportunity, namely deeper regional integration in digital trade. In 2023, only 8.4 per cent of exports of digitally deliverable services stayed within the region – well below levels seen in Europe and Asia.

But the report notes that significant challenges remain, including gaps in digital infrastructure and connectivity, fragmented regulations, limited payment system interoperability, trade and customs bottlenecks, digital skills shortages, and insufficient financing for innovative firms.

To address these challenges, the report calls for action in eight key areas: expanding digital infrastructure, strengthening and modernising regulations, improving payment interoperability, streamlining trade procedures, promoting digital exports, strengthening digital skills, increasing access to finance, and improving the measurement of digital trade.

The report concludes that governments, businesses, and international organisations must work together to expand the region’s participation in digital trade, increase integration into the global economy, and create new opportunities for firms and workers.