Opportunities and challenges in cross-border e-commerce: strategic management within the legal context of BRI countries - A systematic literature synthesis and future research directions

Abstract

This study employs a B-SLR methodology, integrating bibliometric, narrative, and systematic reviews, to explore the evolution, challenges, opportunities, and countermeasures of China’s CBEC trade within BRI countries’ legal frameworks, spanning from 2010 to 2024. Guided by the B-SLR framework, the study adopts a rigorous search and selection process across databases such as Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar. From an initial pool of 134 papers, 104 were analyzed bibliometrically using R-Studio and VOSviewer, while 31 underwent detailed systematic synthesis using different criteria. The results highlight the rapid growth of China’s CBEC with BRI countries, driven by digitalisation, trade partnerships, and infrastructure development, despite recent declines in scientific output. Key findings reveal challenges including regulatory divergence, cultural disparities, and infrastructural gaps, alongside opportunities for strategic digital transformation and regional collaboration. Based on this synthesis, the study proposes a conceptual framework to guide future research, emphasising harmonised legal frameworks, trust-building, and advanced technological solutions. The findings offer actionable insights for policymakers, businesses, and researchers, addressing critical literature gaps and contributing to theoretical and practical advancements in CBEC. This study underscores the importance of adaptive strategies and enriches scholarly discourse on the BRI’s economic and legal dimensions.

Cite this work

No public copy is stored for this record, so only the metadata is cited.

Stored only when both papers are in the corpus — 14 citations exist upstream.

Papers that cite the same references — the relational fallback while embeddings are still backfilling.