The nation's industrial production was estimated at nearly 131 trillion VND (6.24 billion USD) in the first two months of the year, a rise of 14.6 percent over the same period last year, the General Statistics Office (GSO) announced last week.
Foreign directed investment (FDI) accounted for the largest proportion of the figure, reaching 55.5 trillion VND (2.6 billion USD) during the period, an increase of 16.6 percent.
The domestic private sector gained nearly 48.7 trillion VND (2.32 billion USD), a surge of 17 percent, while State-owned enterprises accounted for 26.7 trillion VND (1.273 billion USD), an increase of 7 percent.
Footwear, paint, metal fabrication and cement were among industries to see substantial growth in the period, while the petroleum industry and truck manufacturing saw declines.
Consumer products performed particularly well during the period, climbing 16.5 percent in January alone, according to GSO expert Do Quang Ha – growth that reflected rising consumer confidence during the lunar new year holiday shopping season.
In the post-holiday period, growth in industrial production once again slowed. HCM City 's industrial production was estimated at 43 trillion VND (2 billion USD) in February, a decline of 16.8 percent from January's level, although the figure represented a 19.6 percent increase over the same period last year. In the first two months combined, the city's industrial production reached 94.668 trillion VND (4.3 billion USD), a rise of 13.9 percent.
The private sector saw the strongest growth in the city during the period, increasing by 17.5 percent, while the foreign-invested sector saw growth of 13.5 percent and the State-owned sector 6.9 percent.
Twenty-four out of 27 industrial sectors in HCM City saw increases, led by steel production, up 35.7 percent; manufacturing, up 27.8 percent; construction materials, up 22.4 percent; and rubber products, up 19 percent
(VNA)
