New COVID-19 outbreak puts brakes on trade, transport

Authorities check a coach in Ninh Binh city, the capital of northern Ninh Binh province. (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – The current COVID-19 resurgence has put the brakes on trade, transport and tourism, with all the sectors experiencing declines in May, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

The turns of passengers transported across the country was estimated at 287.8 million this month, a 14.9-percent decrease from April, the GSO reported. The figure exceeded 1.59 billion in the first five months of 2021, up 4.2 percent year-on-year.

In May, transport of goods, meanwhile, increased by 2.8 percent to 139 million tonnes. This brought the total volume of freight transport from January to May to 739 million tonnes, up 10.5 percent year-on-year.

Total retail sales of goods and services valued 393.6 trillion VND (17.1 billion USD), down 3.1 percent from the previous month and 1 percent from a year earlier. The five-month sum hit over 2.08 trillion VND, up 7.6 percent year-on-year.

International visitor arrivals in Vietnam totalled 13,400 this month, down 30.8 percent month-on-month and 40.6 percent year-on-year. The five-month figure plunged 97.8 percent compared to the same period last year as international travel restriction continued to be in place./.

VNA