In 2011, the city signed an agreement covering trade and services with 13 south-western and seven south-eastern provinces for the 2012-15 period.

They agreed to promote areas in which they had respective advantages through close co-operation, trade promotion, exchanging experiences on administrative reform and improvement in management capacity.

It yielded reasonably good results last year, deputy director of the city's Department of Industry and Trade (DoIT) Le Ngoc Dao told Sai Gon Giai Phong (Liberated Sai Gon) newspaper.

One of the most important successes was the establishment of product supply chains together with the provinces.

For instance, beef was supplied to the city by Dong Nai, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Long An, Tien Giang and Tay Ninh, and poultry meat by Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Long An and Tay Ninh.

It also bought vegetables and fruits from Lam Dong, Long An and Tien Giang.

The city consumed over 1,000 tonnes of agricultural produce and 2 million poultry eggs daily, but produced only 15 and 20 per cent of these volumes, Dao said.

Thus, the tie-up not only ensured stable supply for the city but also ensured an outlet for 50 to 70 per cent of the provinces' total output, she said.

Not surprisingly, the programme will continue to be pursued keenly, with focus this year on four aspects:

* The city will exchange commercial information and details of practical experience in managing commerce;

* The city and provinces will organise trade promotion activities, encourage city companies to work with the provinces on agricultural projects to ensure supply for the city, and help the provinces to set up modern distribution networks;

* They will improve monitoring of products coming to the city from the provinces to ensure food safety

* They will co-operate to organise trade promotions, seminars and fairs.

The co-operation with the 20 provinces was only one of several measures the city planned this year to ensure stable supply of goods and liquidate the large inventories firms had, the DoIT's director Nguyen Van Lai said.

It would strengthen distribution networks to ensure that consumers could easily access products at the best prices, he said.

To improve demand, which has been hit hard by the prolonged economic downturn, the city would continue with its price-stabilisation programmes, particularly during festivals and other holidays, and prevent sudden increases in prices.

It would also encourage enterprises and the public to participate in its consumer support programmes like Viet Nam high-quality product fairs, market stablisation schemes, and the "Vietnamese consumers to give priority to Vietnamese goods" programme, he said.

His agency would co-operate with others to monitor global price movements and provide timely assistance to exporters to sustain the city's exports, he added. — VNS