A view of the Tan Thuan Processing Zone in HCM City. (Source: VNA)Ho Chi Minh City’s economic growth is likely to surpass 10 percent for 2015, said Le Hoang Quan, Chairman of the HCM City People’s Committee.
At an October 29 conference on the economic, cultural and social realities for the first 10 months of 2015, and main tasks for November, Quan said data on industrial production, trade and services indicated that the city would be able to beat its yearly growth target of between 9.5 and 10 percent.
The city’s growth showed in an increase in its budget income, which is estimated to reach 260,000 billion VND (11.6 billion USD) for the year, said Quan. Budget income reached 225,972 billion VND (10 billion USD) by the end of October.
Su Ngoc Anh, Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Planning and Investment, said total retail sales amounted to 550,100 billion VND (24.5 billion USD) by the end of October, a year-on-year increase of 10.5 percent.
The city’s exports and imports, excluding crude oil, reached 22.11 billion USD in the first 10 months, up 9.2 percent over the same period last year.
The growth could be seen in the tourism sector, as well. The city welcomed 3.63 million visitors, up 4.6 percent on year – 77 percent of the year’s goal. Tourism revenue was 75,645 billion VND (3.36 billion USD), up 5 percent.
The city’s industrial production continued expanding, increasing the proportion of the processing and manufacturing industries. The four key industrial sectors expanded 7.9 percent.
Another highlight of the city’s economy was the increase of investment capital. It reached 3.08 billion USD, up 4.8 percent. Foreign direct investment capital increased 44.3 percent.
The banks’ middle- and long-term capital grew 16.5 percent from 2014 and the remittances reached 3.7 billion USD.
Tran Anh Tuan, Interim Director of the HCM City Institute for Research and Development, said the increase in investment capital showed investors’ expectations about the business environment.
The large proportion of new companies established in the city showed that the city has maintained its position as a top destination for local investors. This helped generate more jobs for labourers, Tuan said.
The 14.3-percent reduction of companies ending their operations and the strong growth in middle- and long-term credit indicate that the appeal for investment was gradually stabilising.
In order to complete the social-economic development plan from now to the end of 2015 and lay foundations for 2016, Quan asked departments and sectors to implement measures to work toward set goals, including controlling inflation, stablising the macro-economy and ensuring social security.
The banking system was asked to assist companies on interest rates to help them get access to capital for production and business in the end of the year.
The Public Investment Law will take effect in 2016, so Quan asked districts and departments to tighten public spending and projects using state funds to prevent profligacy.
Other goals the city aims to meet include improving the business environment, helping enterprises improve their competitiveness, creating more innovative technology, boosting productivity and quality, and expanding markets by promoting trade and investment.-VNA
