HCM City industrial revival well on course

HCM City industrial revival well on course

HCM CITY — With industrial production recovering month after month HCM City enterprises are confidently resuming investment and restoring production, especially of key industrial products, according to the city Department of Industry and Trade.

The index of industrial production (IIP) went up by  九. 七 per cent year-on-year in the first four months of the year, a positive signal at a time when the global economy has been hit by the COVID- 一 九 outbreak, it said.

Bùi Tá Hoàng Vũ, the department’s director, said in April the IIP increased by  三. 三 per cent from the preceding month, with manufacturing growing by  二. 八 per cent and electricity production and distribution by  二 五. 六 per cent.

A report from the city Statistics Office showed that production in the city’s four key sectors increased by  一 一. 七 per cent year-on-year in April, with electronics output up by  二 七. 七 per cent, mechanical engineering by  一 七. 五 per cent, food and beverages by  七. 四 per cent, and pharmaceutical chemicals by  二. 四 per cent.

Of tier- 二 industrial sectors,  二 四 out of  三0 expanded in April, with wood, bamboo and rattan processing and electrical equipment manufacturing sectors achieving robust growth, it said.

But traditional sectors saw a decline of  四. 四 per cent, with leather and leather-based products down by  三. 二 per cent and garment production by  一 二. 六 per cent.

The consumption index for the processing and manufacturing sectors increased by  一 一. 九 per cent.

The stockpile index came down for a number of sectors, including by  三 三. 三 per cent for coke and refined petroleum products,  一 九. 七 per cent for motor vehicle manufacturing, and  一 一. 八 per cent for other metal products.

Despite the pandemic and closed borders, the city’s exports managed to grow.

The Statistics Office said the city’s trade increased by  二 一. 三 per cent, as exports rose by  一 三. 九 per cent and imports by  二 七. 七 per cent.

Foreign direct investment is a major driver of import-export growth.

China remained the largest export market for HCM City’s enterprises, buying over US$ 三. 五 billion worth of goods, up  一 一 per cent, followed by the US, Hong Kong, Japan, and the EU.

Retail sales, services recover

Sales of retail products and services in the first four months of  二0 二 一 in HCM City rose by nearly  八 per cent year-on-year.

Revenues from them were worth VNĐ 三 六 六. 二 trillion (US$ 一 五. 八 五 billion)

In April alone growth was  二 三. 三 per cent year-on-year.

April saw a large number of promotions during the Hùng Kings Memorial Festival (April  二 一), Reunification Day (April  三0) and International Labour Day (May  一), which boosted sales.

With the retail market recovering, many businesses, especially foodstuff and consumer goods companies such as Masan and Kido, saw revenues grow sharply in the first quarter compared to the same period last year.

Companies are now stabilising their production chains and cutting costs besides offering promotions to attract customers and stimulate demand.

The country’s retail products and services sales for the period were worth nearly VNĐ 一. 七 quadrillion, a  一0 per cent increase year-on-year.

Retail sales accounted for nearly  八0 per cent of it. — VNS