2023 is a pivotal year in Ho Chi Minh City in terms of aiming to free up existing resources, innovate in managerial thinking, improve economic resilience and adaptability, and overcome difficulties and challenges.

TRADE, SERVICES GROW STRONG

Ho Chi Minh City Bureau of Statistics report states that the total retail sales of consumer goods and services was estimated at VND90,520 billion in January 2023, down 5.7% month-on-month; Among them, retail sales increased by 4.6%, accommodation and catering services fell by 2.1%, travel and tourism services fell by 4.8%, other services fell by 24%.

Compared to the same period in 2022, total retail sales of consumer goods and services increased by 5.7% in January 2023. Specifically, retail sales increased by 7.8%, accommodation and catering services by 61%, travel services by 98.7%, other services by 9.9%. The retail sales of goods in the month was estimated at VND 56,887 billion, accounting for 62.8% of the total retail sales of goods and services, up 4.6% from December 2022.

The product groups with a large share and strong growth are food and groceries. Accordingly, this group accounted for 19.1% and increased by 5.6%. Next is the household appliances group, which accounted for 12.5% ​​and was up 6.4%. Vehicles and vehicles (including repair services) accounted for 16.2%, up 4.7%. Gasoline and other fuels accounted for 11.7%, up 2.3%; Apparel accounted for 8.6%, up 6.8%…

Compared to the same period in 2022, retail sales of goods increased by 7.8% in the first month of 2023; There are three commodity groups with the highest increases, namely groceries, up 12.3%; food by 12.4%; Cars and other transportation rose 12.9%.

Regarding services, the revenue from travel services was estimated at VND802 billion in January 2023, down 4.8% month-on-month and increasing 98.7% over the same period. Revenue from other consumer services in the month was estimated at VND24,765 billion, down 24% month-on-month. In particular, the real estate business accounted for 59.4% and fell by 25.6%. Compared to the same period, revenue from other consumer services fell by 9.9%, of which real estate fell by 14.6%.

In general, the city ensures the balance of supply and demand for food and food products before, during and after the Lunar New Year without fluctuations in the price of food and food products, according to Mr. Nguyen Khac Hoang, director of Ho Chi Minh City’s statistics department.

Mr. Hoang also said that travel agencies constantly offer many attractive promotional tours to meet people’s spring travel needs; Promote the use of various forms of tourism, sightseeing, shopping, dining at night in the districts, Thu Duc City and connecting with localities to develop the tourism industry again.

INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION HARDLY REDUCED BECAUSE… TET!

This year’s Lunar New Year is coming earlier (Tet falls on the 3rd week of January 2023), so the production time in the month is less than in December 2022. Therefore, it was estimated that the Industrial Production Index (IIP) in January 2023 compared to the previous month by 21.4% declined.

In particular, the processing and manufacturing industry declined by 22.0%; Power generation and distribution fell by 12.8%; The water supply and waste treatment industry fell by 8.4%. All 30/30 tier 2 industries are down compared to the last month of 2022; where 15/30 industries declined by over 20%.

Details of some industries are as follows: other mining activities fell by 30.1%; Beverage production down 31.0%; Production of costumes down 29.2%; wood processing down 27.7%; Printing and copying of records down 23.5%; production of coke, refined petroleum products fell by 42.1%; production of non-metallic mineral products fell by 46.5%; metal production fell by 20.8%; production of prefabricated metal products decreased by 44.6%; Production of machinery and equipment not otherwise classified down 30%; Motor vehicle production fell by 46.8%; Production of other means of transport reduced by 30%; Production of beds, wardrobes, tables and chairs down 37%; Repair, maintenance and installation of machinery and equipment down 36.3%; Drainage and wastewater treatment decreased by 21.4%.

The IIP in Ho Chi Minh City fell by 15.0% in January 2023 compared to the same period last year. In which the processing and manufacturing industry declined by 15.6%; Power generation and distribution fell by 4.7%; Water supply and waste treatment decreased by 2.2%. Out of 30 secondary industries, only four have increased compared to the same period last year. These are the industries: Beverage production increased by 71.5%; Production of coke, refined petroleum products increased by 57%; Production of rubber and plastic products increased by 15.2%; Exploitation, treatment and provision of water increased by 0.3%. The rest declined, some industries down more than 20%.

For four key industries, IIP decreased by 5.5% in January 2023 compared to the same period in 2022. In particular, the electronics manufacturing industry declined by 34.3%; Machinery down 28.4%; the food and beverage industry increased by 22.5%, the chemical and pharmaceutical industry by 0.8%.

For the three traditional industries, IIP records fell by 26.6% in January 2023 compared to the same period last year; in which the manufacture of leather and related products decreased by 22.0%; Production of costumes down 36.6%; Textile industry declined by 7.8%.

Other indices also declined over the same period. As the consumption index of the total manufacturing and manufacturing industry in the month is expected to decrease by 18.9% compared to December 2022. In general, the consumption index of the entire industry fell by 12.7% in January 2023 compared to the same period in 2022.

On the other hand, the inventory index of manufacturing and manufacturing industries was estimated to have risen 6.6% in the month compared to the same period last year; where some industries have a higher inventory index than the general growth rate of the entire industry. These are the following sectors: manufacture of uncategorized machines and systems 83.5%; Production of tobacco products increased by 81.4%; the production of other means of transport increased by 63.5%; Garment production increased by 61.7%.

A number of industries saw sharp declines in inventories compared to the same period in 2022, such as: the production of leather and related products fell by 61.5%; Beverage production down 48.2%; Production of paper and paper products fell by 29.6%…