Ms. Nguyen Thi Huong, Director General of the General Statistics Office, said that this is the lowest GDP growth rate in the past decade (2011-2020). However, in the context of the COVID-19 epidemic seriously affecting all socio-economic aspects, a 2.12% GDP growth, according to Ms. Nguyen Thi Huong, is a great success.
Following is an overview Vietnam’s economy in the first 9 months of 2020 compiled by VietnamCredit.
Gross domestic product (GDP) in the third quarter of 2020 is estimated to increase by 2.62% over the same period last year, which is the lowest increase between 2011 and 2020.
GDP growth for the first nine months of 2020 increased by 2.12%, which is the lowest 9-month growth rate since 2011. In the general growth of the economy, the agriculture, forestry and fishery sector contributed 13.62%, industrial and construction sectors contributed 58.35%, and the service sector contributed 28.03%.
Due to the negative impact of the Covid-19 epidemic, Index of Industrial Production (IIP) increased by only 2.34% over the same period last year. For the first nine months, the industrial added value increased by 2.69%, of which the processing and manufacturing sector increased by 4.6%.
Inventory index for the processing and manufacturing sector was estimated to increase by 24.3% over the same period last year, of which some sub-sectors had lower or decreasing inventory index than the general growth.
The number of newly established enterprises in September 2020 decreased by 12.6% compared to the same period in 2019, mainly due to the influence of the Covid-19 epidemic. However, the scale of registered capital continued to be expanded, increasing by 45% over the same period last year.
Generally, for the first months of 2020, the total number of newly established and re-operated enterprises reached 133.6 thousand, up 2.9% over the same period last year. The average registered capital of a newly established enterprise is 14.4 billion VND, up 14.4%.
In September 2020, there were 10.3 thousand newly established enterprises with registered capital of 203.3 trillion VND and the number of registered employees was 83 thousand workers. The average registered capital per newly established enterprise in this month was 19.7 billion VND, a decrease of 8.5% from the previous month and an increase of 65.9% over the same period in 2019.
Realized social investment capital for the first 3 quarters of 2020 increased by 4.8% compared to the same period in 2019, the lowest increase in the 2016-2020 period due to the negative impact of Covid-19 epidemic on all business and manufacturing activities.
Realized social investment in the third quarter of 2020 at current prices was estimated at 597.2 trillion VND. Generally, for the first 9 months of 2020, social investment capital at current prices was estimated at 1,445.4 trillion VND, which is an increase of 4.8% over the same period last year and accounts for 34.7% of GDP.
As of September 20, 2020, total foreign investment capital into Vietnam including newly registered capital, adjusted registered capital and capital contribution and share purchase of foreign investors, had reached 21.2 billion USD, down 18.9% over the same period last year. Realized FDI capital for the first nine months was estimated at nearly 13.8 billion USD, down 3.2% from the same period last year.
Total retail sales of consumer goods and services in September 2020 increased by 2.7% over the previous month and by 4.9% over the same period last year. Generally, for the first 9 months of 2020, total retail sales of consumer goods and services increased slightly by 0.7%.
September’s total retail sales of consumer goods and services were estimated at 441.4 trillion VND. For the third quarter of 2020, the total estimated retail sales of consumer goods and services reached 1,305.8 trillion VND, an increase of 14.4% over the previous quarter and 4.5% over the same period last year.
In the context of a disruption in global trade, Vietnam's merchandise exports have experienced a positive increase. The total import and export turnover in September 2020 were estimated at 51.5 billion USD, up 15% over the same period last year. Generally, for the first nine months of this year, the total import and export turnover reached 388.73 billion USD.
Export turnover in September 2020 was estimated at 27.5 billion USD, down 0.7% from the previous month. Compared to the same period last year, September’s export turnover increased by 18%. In the third quarter of 2020, the export turnover reached 80.07 billion USD, up 11% over the same period last year and 34.4% over the second quarter of this year. Generally, for the first 9 months of 2020, export turnover was estimated at 202.86 billion USD, up 4.2% over the same period last year.
In the third quarter of 2020, the import turnover reached 68.54 billion USD, up 3% over the same period last year and 18.5% over the second quarter of this year. Generally, for the first 9 months of 2020, the import turnover was estimated at 185.87 billion USD, a 0.8% decrease over the same period last year.
September’s consumer price index (CPI) increased by 0.12% over the previous month, which is the lowest increase in the 2016-2020 period. On average, for the first 9 months of 2020, the CPI increased by 3.85% over the same period last year. Generally, for the third quarter of 2020, CPI increased by 0.92% compared to the previous quarter and by 3.18% over the same period in 2019.
The core inflation decreased by 0.02% over the previous month and increased by 1.97% over the same period last year. The average core inflation in the first 9 months of 2020 increased by 2.59% compared to the same period in 2019.
Source: GSO, Compiled & Design by VietnamCredit
