Revealing novel insights on economic structure from a spatial perspective: Empirical findings from Vietnam

Abstract

Economic structure plays an essential role in distributing resources and shaping the development trend of a country. Although it has become a topic of interest for scholars, most studies focus on analyzing factors affecting the structural transformation process but ignore the correlation in economic structure between localities. This study explores this correlation through the case of a country undergoing a remarkable economic restructuring process-Vietnam. Based on the data from 2010 to 2019, the Moran?s index (I) is used to assess the level of spatial correlation in the economic structure of localities and the Local Indicator of Spatial Autocorrelation (LISA) is analyzed to determine the specific locations where local spatial correlation occurs. Research results show that the economic structure of localities is unevenly distributed across geographical space. In addition, there exists a spatial autocorrelation phenomenon in localities' economic structure for two sectors-agriculture and industry. At the same time, there is no evidence to show this for the service sector. This discovery confirms the necessity of incorporating spatial factors in research related to economic structure to avoid inaccurate conclusions. From a business perspective, based on the findings of this research, companies can assess the level of competition, risks, as well as business partnership opportunities in different areas, and make appropriate investment decisions. The research results might also serve government agencies regarding planning and functional zoning and formulating and implementing development and economic restructuring policies for various regions.