Nguyen Dinh Chieu Co-op Mart in HCM City. The city has seen an increase in retail sales and service revenues during the first five months of this year. — VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Vu

HCM CITY (Biz Hub)— HCM City has maintained reasonable socio-economic growth in the first five months of 2013, the HCM City People's Committee chairman has said.

Le Hoang Quan said yesterday that the city's total retail sales and service revenues rose by 7.7 per cent compared with the same period last year.

Quan was speaking at a meeting to review the city's socio-economic growth. He noted that the CPI rose by only 0.66 per cent compared with December 2012, when it grew by 2.49 per cent.

Exports during the first five months were VND10.73 trillion (US$512 million), a year-on year increase of 4.3 per cent, while industrial production grew by 4.6 per cent.

Agriculture-forestry-seafood production increased by 6.7 per cent, while the number of tourist arrivals in the city was 286,200, a year-on-year increase of 6 per cent.

To promote business, Quan has asked the city's Government agencies to take measures to help them settle bad debts and overcome other difficulties.

In the next seven months of 2013, the city will focus on measures for trade promotion and market expansion.

The city authority will promote exports, carry out programmes for price and market stabilisation, and help businesses reduce inventory by sending goods to remote areas and conduct demand-stimulus programmes in rural areas.

The city will also continue to improve management and accelerate work on major construction projects, said Quan. —VNS