Some 57.8 per cent of respondents said they hoped for better prospects in Q2 compared with Q1. — Photo ndh.vn

Enterprises active in the processing and manufacturing industry are hoping to fare better in the second quarter of this year following improvements in the first few months of 2017.

According to a recent survey of the General Statistics Office (GSO), some 57.8 per cent of respondents said they hoped for better prospects compared with the first quarter of this year, while 32.4 per cent said their businesses would remain stable. Other firms predicted they may face more challenges.

When asked about the first quarter, 33.7 per cent of respondents said they have achieved better business results in the first quarter of this year than in the previous quarter and 41.8 per cent said they maintained stable operations. The remaining 24.5 per cent reported difficulties.

Regarding factors affecting domestic production and business in the first quarter, most respondents said low competitiveness of domestic goods was the most significant factor.

Besides this, low domestic demand and financial difficulty were other factors that had a negative effect on domestic production and business in the first quarter, according to the survey. — VNS