Paper is produced at An Hoa Paper Joint Stock Company in Tuyen Quang Province's Son Duong District. Local enterprises have a positive outlook on the business climate for the third quarter of this year, a survey by the General Statistics Office revealed. — VNA/VNS Photo Vu Sinh

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Viet Nam's enterprises have a positive outlook on the business climate for the third quarter, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO) under the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

The office reported that 49 per cent of 3,389 enterprises in the domestic processing and manufacturing sector participating in its survey on business trends said that local business would be better in the third quarter.

At the same time, 13.2 per cent of the enterprises predicted that local business would be weaker, while 37.4 per cent said the business situation would remain stable.

All the surveyed businesses said that trends in production and business in the second quarter were more stable than in the first quarter.

However, the office said that in the first seven months of this year, Viet Nam had 32,370 enterprises ending their operations or locking tax codes, an increase of 1.2 per cent against the same period last year.

That figure proved that the situation of enterprises has not been better due to the complicated development of the domestic economy, as well as the slower recovery of local enterprises, vietnamplus.vn reported.

Experts said the domestic macro-economy has shown signals of stability and growth, but with pressures of competitiveness during periods of integration into the world economy, local enterprises still continue facing many difficulties.

Further, results of reforming the investment and business environment have not met the demands from the domestic enterprise community, the experts said.

Local enterprises have also faced difficulties, including proposals on reducing time for granting permission for construction, receiving electricity and the start-up of business. The enterprises need the Government's supports for them.

To improve the efficiency of enterprises, Nguyen Dinh Cung, director of the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM), said one of the important solutions is to further improve the local business environment.

He said the state should promote socialisation of investment activities and provide services under the public private partnership method, including some state management services.

The state should also restructure paid government public services to convert into operations following enterprise procedures and promote further equitisation, he said.

Moreover, the State should promote the adoption of information technologies for its management, especially in administrative procedures and online public services, as well as implement one-door procedures. — VNS