Europe is the most e-commerce friendly region in the world, led by the Netherlands. According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) 2019 E-Commerce index.
The Czech Republic finished 25th out of 152 countries and improved year-on-year by six places.
The ranking takes into account the proportion of the population with Internet access, an account with a financial institution or with access to mobile monetary services, Internet security, and the reliability of the postal service. Eight European countries – the Netherlands, Switzerland, Finland, Britain, Denmark, Norway, Ireland, and Germany – were placed in the top ten countries. Singapore is 3rd and Australia came in 10th. The United States finished 13th. Due to the low proportion of Internet users compared to other developed countries, which is as high as in the Czech Republic. Russia occupied 40th place, China finished 56th, while Hong Kong was 15th.
Slovakia edged out the Czech Republic for 24th place. The survey shows that 80 percent of Internet users in six countries (Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Britain) buy online. In contrast, in more than 20 poorer countries, less than 10 percent of Internet users buy online.
UNCTAD ranked the ranking as provisional, pointing out that the latest data on the number of people with an account with a financial institution or access to mobile money services comes from 2017. The proportion of Internet users is based on data from last year. The shifts compared to previous years have therefore led to an assessment of Internet security and the reliability of the postal service.