Garment production at Maxport Company in Thái Bình Province. Việt Nam runs a record trade surplus fof nearly $30 billion this year, nearly three times higher than 2022. — VNA/VNS Photo Thế Duyệt

The recovery of industrial production and trade has contributed significantly to promoting Việt Nam’s socio-economic development in the context of the global slowdown this year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Reporting on the industry and trade achievements at the ministry’s conference on Wednesday, Deputy Miniter Phan Thị Thắng said that the added value of the industry sector is estimated to increase by 2.98 per cent for the full year, in which the processing and manufacturing industry jumps by 3.48 per cent.

“Localities have made efforts to overcome difficulties and gradually restore production. Key industrial production localities have maintained positive upward momentum, such as Bà Rịa – Vũng Tàu, Bình Dương, Vĩnh Phúc, Vĩnh Long, Quảng Ninh and HCM City,” she said.

Notably, exports are a spotlight in the context of the global slowdown.

The total import and export value is estimated to total US$683 billion. Việt Nam has run a trade surplus for eight years in a row, estimated at a record high of nearly $30 billion this year, nearly three times higher than in 2022. This contributes positively to ensuring payment balance, increasing foreign exchange reserves, stabilising exchange rates and other macroeconomic indicators, she said.

“In the context of a global slowdown and declining global aggregate demand, Việt Nam’s export has not yet recovered to the previous years’ levels, but the drops are narrowing down significantly.”

Domestic trade also saw recovery, with the total retail sales of goods and services increasing by 9.6 per cent, higher than the target set at 8-9 per cent.

Still, there are limitations, including lower-than-expected growth of the manufacturing and processing industry, which was the growth momentum in previous years.

Speaking at the conference, Deputy Prime Minister Trần Hồng Hà applauded the industry and trade achievements in a challenging context from rising global uncertainties and unpredictable world developments, which insert multi-dimensional impacts on the country’s socio-economic development.

Hà asked the ministry to identify challenges and difficulties to raise solutions towards achieving the Government’s goals for 2024.

In response, Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyễn Hồng Diên asks the focus to be on promoting innovations and improving institutional reforms.

The ministry will complete plans to implement national planning on energy and minerals and improve the legal framework to facilitate production and business and improve national competitiveness.

The restructuring of the industry and trade sector must also be enhanced in line with the transformation of growth model which is driven by science and technology and increasing productivity, competitiveness and resilience of the economy. Pilot mechanisms for emerging sectors and new business models will be developed to create new growth drivers for the economy.

Diên also said that international integration would be promoted to attract the new wave of foreign investment flow triggered by the global production shift of multinational enterprises to diversify supply chains and avoid disruptions. Priorities would be given to high-tech sectors such as chip production, renewable energy, digital infrastructure and new materials.

Support will be provided to enterprises to enhance linkage with FDI companies and to effectively take advantage of the free trade agreements to diversify markets, supply chains and promote exports.

The ministry will focus on renovating trade promotions, encouraging the combination of traditional trade and e-commerce and digital economy to exploit the largely untapped potential of the domestic market.

Việt Nam will continue to actively negotiate trade agreements with potential partners in Africa, South Asia and West Asia and South America to create new momentum for trade and investment cooperation.

Close watch would be placed on market developments to have timely and appropriate management measures and protect domestic production, he said. — VNS