Abstract
The conventional sources of competitive advantage for countries and sectors are changing in light of the fast growth of the global digital economy. Whether and how digital trade facilitation can become a new engine for enhancing national export competitiveness has emerged as a critical issue. This paper utilizes panel data from Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) member states spanning 2010 to 2023 to construct a comprehensive evaluation index system for digital trade facilitation across three dimensions: digital infrastructure, application, and security. An extended gravity model is used to experimentally investigate the impact of digital trade facilitation levels on the competitiveness of China’s electronic commerce exports. Research findings: (1) The RCEP member states’ overall degree of digital trade facilitation is trending increasing, but significant internal divergence exists. Countries like Singapore, Japan, and Australia lead the way, while Myanmar and Laos lag behind. (2) China’s electronic commerce export performance is much improved by the degree of digital transaction facilitation among RCEP nations, the conclusion that still holds after robustness tests. (3) Economic scale, population size, bilateral free trade agreement status, and geographic distance remain crucial factors influencing export. This study offers policy insights for promoting high-quality development of China’s cross-border e-commerce, deepening digital trade cooperation, and building sustainable regional export competitiveness in the digital era.