- Agriculture, forestry and fishery
a) Agriculture
Agricultural production in the month focused mainly on paddy farming, tending for winter paddy, harvesting summer-autumn paddy and annual crops. As of August 15, the country cultivated 1,349.4 thousand hectares of winter paddy, an equal to 99.8%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which Northern provinces reached 1,128 thousand hectares, an equal 98.4%; This year’s crop of Northern provinces was affected by heavy rain occurred on large scale in late July and early August with 387 hectares of paddy lost and 6.8 thousand hectares of paddy area was re-cultivated.
Area of summer-autumn paddy cultivation in the country was estimated at 2,105.2 thousand hectares, an equal to that of over the same period last year, of which the Central Coastal area recorded 183.4 thousand hectares, an increase of 16.6 thousand hectares. Particularly in Mekong River Delta, area of summer-autumn paddy cultivation saw a decline, the whole region reached 1,651.5 thousand hectares, a decline of over 23 thousand hectares, in comparison with that of over the same period in 2016[1]. As of mid-August, the country harvested 1,056.9 thousand hectares of summer-autumn paddy, an equal to 111.1%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which mainly concentrated in the Mekong River Delta with 947.6 thousand hectares, an equal to 104.2%, in comparison with that of over the same period in 2016. Area of remaining summer-autumn paddy was expected to be harvested by the end of August. According to local reports, yield of summer-autumn paddy in the harvested area reached 54.9-55.4 quintals/hectare, an increase of 1-1.5 quintal/hectare, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which Mekong River Delta recorded 55-55.6 quintals/hectare, an increase of 1.2-1.8 quintals/hectare.
As of middle of August, Mekong River Delta cultivated 464.8 thousand hectares of autumn-winter paddy, an equal to 96.6%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which most localities reduced cultivation area due to effects of early food rising (An Giang by 33 thousand hectares; Dong Thap by 13.6 thousand hectares); Only Tien Giang recorded an increase in cultivated area by 30.7 thousand hectares.
Cultivation annual crops recorded lower, in comparison with that of over the same period last year due to effects of storms and flooding occurred on large scale. As of August 15, localities in the nationwide cultivated 914.1 thousand hectares of maize, an equal to 96.3%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year; soybean reached 66.2 thousand hectares, an equal to 88.1%; groundnut reached 173 thousand hectares, an equal to 97.5%; vegetables and beans reached 854.9 thousand hectares, an equal to 94.4%; only sweet potatoes reached 101.7 thousand hectares, an equal to 101.4%.
Buffalo, cattle’s and poultry husbandry witnessed stability; pig farming was stagnated due to low price. Buffalo population in the country in the month was estimated to decrease by 0.5%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year; cattle increased by 2.8%; pigs decreased by 4%; poultry increased by 5.1%. As of August 27, 2017, the country no longer recorded bird flu and blue ear disease in pigs; and in 21 days yet recorded any foot and mouth epidemics occurred in Gia Lai and Dak Lak.
b) Forestry
In August, area of concentrated forests was estimated at 21.1 thousand hectares, a growth of 7.7%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which some provinces saw robust increase in area: Thanh Hoa reached 1,820 hectares, by 12 %; Binh Thuan reached 954 hectares, by 92%; Quang Ngai reached 795 hectares, by 70.2%; Lang Son reached 788 hectares, by 13.5%. Number of scattered trees in the month reached 7.2 million trees, an increase of 2.9%; wood production reached 985 thousand m3, an increase of 6.8%; firewood production reached 2.2 million ste, an equal to that of over the same period last year.
Generally in 8 months, concentrated forest area was estimated at 140.2 thousand hectares, an increase of 5.6%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year; number of scattered trees reached 75.3 million, a decline of 0.5%; wood production reached 6,583 thousand m3, a growth of 6.5%; firewood production reached 18.5 million ste, a decrease of 0.5%.
Area of damaged forest in August was 64.1 hectares, a decline of 78.7%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which area of forest fire recorded 9.3 hectares, a decline of 93.5% due to the large quantity of rainfall in the month that limited the risk of forest fires; area of forests cut and damaged was 54.8 hectares, a drop of 65.3%. Generally in 8 months, the damaged forest area was 1,225.1 hectares, a drop of 59%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which forest fire area was 455.2 hectares, a decrease of 78.7%; area of deforested forest was 769.9 ha, a decline of 9.6%.
c) Fishery
In August, fishery production in the country recorded 730.5 thousand tons, an increase of 5.7%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which fish reached 514 thousand tons, a growth of 4.9%; shrimp reached 115.1 thousand tons, a growth of 12%.
Aquaculture production in the month recorded 434.3 thousand tons, a growth of 5.7%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which fish reached 296.9 thousand tons, by 4%; shrimp reached 99.6 thousand tons, by 13.3%. Pegasus production in August was estimated at 146.9 thousand tons, by 2.3%, in comparison with that of over the same period in 2016, of which Dong Thap reached 85.5 thousand tons, by 2.1%; Can Tho reached 15.5 thousand tons, by 3.1%; Ben Tre reached 8 thousand tons, by 14.2%. Brackish shrimp farming witnessed a consecutive growth. Production of black tiger shrimp in the month was estimated at 32.6 thousand tons, by 10.1%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which Bac Lieu reached 9.3 thousand tons, by 69%; Kien Giang reached 5.7 thousand tons, by 1.9%; Soc Trang reached 3.5 thousand tons, by 53.3%. Production of white leg shrimp was estimated at 50.1 thousand tons, a rise of 22.5%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which Soc Trang reaches 24.5 thousand tons, by 65%; Ca Mau reached 7 thousand tons, by 75%; Tien Giang reached 5 thousand tons, by 56%. Thanks to the favorable weather in the month so marine catching production recorded good of 296.2 thousand tons, a rise of 5.7%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which marine catching reached 275.8 thousand tons, an increase of 5, 7%.
Generally in 8 months of 2017, fisheries production recorded 4,738.4 thousand tons, an increase of 4.6%, in comparison with that of over the same period last year, of which aquaculture production reached 2,490.9 thousand tons, a growth of 4, 3%; catching production reached 2,247.5 thousand tons, an increase of 4.9%.
- Industrial production
The index of industrial production (IIP) in August was estimated to increase by 8.4% over the same period last year, of which the mining and quarrying decreased by 5%; the manufacturing increased by 12.4%; the production and distribution of electricity went up 9.6%; the water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities expanded 7.3%.
Generally for 8 months of 2017, the IIP increased by 6.7% over the same period last year; lower than the growth of 7.2% in the same period of 2016[2] but higher than the rise of 6.5% in 7 months this year. In industrial activities, the IIP of the manufacturing, the production and distribution of electricity, the water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities increased by 10.8%, 8.6%, 7.4%, respectively, which contributing 7.5 percentage points, 0.6 percentage points, 0.1 percentage points to the overall IIP, respectively; particularly, the IIP of the mining and quarrying decreased by 6.9%, causing a fall of 1.5 percentage points in the overall IIP.
In the 2-digit industrial activities, the IIP of some industrial activities in 8 months remarkably increased over the same period last year, such as the manufacture of basic metal (21.2%); the manufacture of electronic, computers and optical products (17.8%); the manufacture of fabricated metal products (except machinery and equipment) (13.5%); the manufacture of rubber and plastic products (10.4%); the manufacture of paper and paper products (10.1%); the manufacture of weaving apparel (10%). Some industrial activities experienced a moderate increase, specifically: the manufacture of food products (6.3%); other mining and quarrying (3.8%); the manufacture of motor vehicles (2%); the mining of hard coal and lignite (1.7%); a number of industrial activities witnessed a decrease in the IIP, for example: the manufacture of tobacco (1.8%); the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, medicinal chemical and botanical products (2.1%); the extraction of crude oil and natural gas (10.1%).
In 8 months of this year, some main industrial products increased sharply over the same period last year: Television (34.4%); iron and crude steel (26.7%); rolled steel (23.9%); fabrics from natural yarn (17.7%); urea fertilizer (17.3%). Some products increased quite well: NPK mixed fertilizer (9.8%); running water (9.6%); fresh milk (9.5%); processed seafood (9.4%); steel bar and angle steel (9.3%); casual wearing apparel (8.6%). Several products moderately decreased, e.g.: leather shoes and sandals (2.5%); coal (1.6%); cigarettes (0.5%); mobile phones (0.8%); automobile (4.5%); natural gas (9.2%); extracted crude oil (10.8%); liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) (13.4%).
Some localities with large share of the industry sector in 8 months showed an increase in the IIP compared to the same period last year, for example: Hai Phong (20.6%); Thai Nguyen (18.1%); Bac Ninh (14.1%); Hai Duong (11.5%); Da Nang (9.7%); Binh Duong (9.1%); Vinh Phuc (9%); Dong Nai (8.3%); Ho Chi Minh City (7.3%); Can Tho (6.9%); Ha Noi (6.5%); Quang Ninh (4.1%). Otherwise, the IIP of Quang Nam, Ba Ria – Vung Tau decreased by 2.6%, 4.8%, respectively.
The index of industrial shipment (IIS) of the manufacturing activities in July 2017 increased by 1.6% over the previous month and by 8.3% over the same period last year. Generally for 7 months, the IIS of the manufacturing increased by 9.5% compared to the first 7 months of 2016 (a growth of 8.1% in the same period last year), of which some industrial activities saw a high increase: the manufacture of basic metal (22.2%); the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, medicinal chemical and botanical products (18.9%); the manufacture of leather and related products (17.4%); the manufacture of textiles (14.8%); the manufacture of fabricated metal products (except machinery and equipment) (14.6%). Some industrial activities experienced a small increase of the IIS: the manufacture of electronic, computer and optical products (6.8%); the manufacture of tobacco products (6.7%); the manufacture of electrical equipment (6.3%); the manufacture of beverages (5.3%).
The index of industrial inventory of the manufacturing as of 1st August, 2017 increased by 9.8% compared to the same period last year (going up 8.9% in same period of 2016), of which the index of industrial inventory of the manufacture of food products, the manufacture of textile had a lower rise of 7.9%, 1%, respectively; some industrial activities experienced a decrease in the index of industrial inventory, such as: the manufacture of other transport equipment (0.3%); the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, medicinal chemical and botanical products (16.4%); the manufacture of leather and related products (22.3%); the manufacture of tobacco products (25.1%). Some industrial activities possessed a remarkable increase in the index of industrial inventory against previous year: the manufacture of beverages (62%); the manufacture electronic, computer and optical products (55.2%); the manufacture of other non-metallic mineral products (25.6%); the manufacture of motor vehicles (25.3%); the manufacture of basic metals (21.3%); the manufacture of electrical equipment (19.4%); the manufacture of furniture (19%).
The average index of industrial inventory of the manufacturing in 7 months of 2017 was 65.3%, of which some industrial activities had high index of industrial inventory: the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, medicinal chemical and botanical products (131.1%); the manufacture of chemicals and chemical products (82.3%); the manufacture of other non-metallic mineral products (77%); the manufacture of motor vehicles (76.4%); the manufacture of food products (75.2%).
The number of employees working in industrial enterprises as of 1st August, 2017 increased by 4.3% compared to the same period last year, of which the number of employees in state-owned enterprises decreased by 4%; in non-state enterprises increased by 0.9%; in FDI enterprises increased by 7.6%. At the same time, the number of employees working in the mining and quarrying decreased by 7% compared to the same period last year; in the manufacturing increased by 5.1%; in the production and distribution of electricity decreased by 3.2%; in the water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities decreased by 1.1%.
Some provinces and cities directly under the Central with large share of the industry sector witnessed an increase in the number of employees working in enterprises as of 1st August, 2017 compared to the same period last year, including: Bac Ninh (26.3%); Dong Nai (7.6%); Hai Duong (7.5%); Thai Nguyen (6.6%); Binh Duong (5%); Vinh Phuc (4.4%); Hai Phong (4.3%); Can Tho (1.6%); Da Nang (1.4%); Ho Chi Minh City (0.8%); Ha Noi (0.3%); but Quang Nam and Ba Ria – Vung Tau saw a fall of 1.7% and 2.8%, respectively.
- Enterprise registration status [3]
In August, there were 12,404 newly established enterprises in the whole country with registered capital of 131.4 trillion VND, an increase of 6.2% in the number of enterprises and 39% in the registered capital compared with the previous month[4]; the average registered capital of an enterprise reached 10.6 billion VND, rose by 30.8%; the total number of registered employees in the month of newly established enterprises was 101.7 thousand, up by 8.8%.
In the month, there were 1,605 re-operated enterprises, a downturn of 26% compared to the previous month; 3,777 temporarily ceased enterprises (including: 1,667 enterprises ceased for a certain period of time and 2,110 enterprises temporarily ceased without registration or awaited dissolution), a decrease of 33.7%; 1,146 enterprises completed dissolution procedures, a decline of 1.6%.
Generally for 8 months, there were 85,357 newly registered enterprises with total registered capital of 822.1 trillion VND, up 16.3% in the number of enterprises and 44.8% in the registered capital compared to the same period in 2016; the average registered capital of a newly established enterprise reached 9.6 billion VND, rising by 24.5%[5]. If including 1,108.3 trillion VND of nearly 24.7 thousand enterprises that recorded upward adjustment of capital, the total added registered capital in the economy in the first 8 months of 2017 was 1,930.4 trillion VND. Besides, there were 19,154 re-operated enterprises, a rise of 2.4% over the same period last year, accordingly, the total number of newly registered enterprises and re-operated enterprises in 8 months was 104.5 thousand enterprises. The total number of registered employees of newly established enterprises in 8 months was 822.4 thousand persons, reduced 4.1% compared to the same period last year.
By major economic activities, in 8 months of 2017, there were 30.7 thousand newly established enterprises in the wholesale and retail (accounting for 36% of the total newly established enterprises), an increase of 17.9% over the same the previous year; 11 thousand construction enterprises (accounting for 12.9%), up 11.6%; 11 thousand manufacturing enterprises (accounting for 12.9%), going up by 10.6%; 6.4 thousand enterprises in the science, technology, consultation service, designing, advertisement and others (accounting for 7.5%), an upturn of 12.1%; 4.5 thousand enterprises in the employment services, travel, renting and leasing of machinery, equipment and other support services (accounting for 5.3%), climbing by 25.1%; 4.1 thousand enterprises in the accommodation and catering services (accounting for 4.8%), up 15.4%; 3.2 thousand enterprises in the real estate activities (accounting for 3.7%), jumping by 65.8%; 2.2 thousand enterprises in the education and training (accounting for 2.6%), expanding by 30%.
In the first 8 months of this year, some economic regions in the country witnessed a high increase in the number of newly established enterprises compared to the same period last year. In which: Northern Midlands and Mountains areas had 3.7 thousand enterprises, a growth of 31.8% (registered capital of 41 trillion VND, up 38.5%); Central Highlands had 2.2 thousand enterprises, a surge of 25.4% (registered capital of 16.5 trillion VND, went up 39.8%); Mekong River Delta was 6.1 thousand enterprises, up 17.9% (registered capital of 44.1 trillion VND, reduced 13.6%); Red River Delta was 26.2 thousand enterprises, rising by 18.5% (registered capital of 196.1 trillion VND, spread 10%); South East was 35.6 thousand enterprises, went up 13.5% (registered capital 421.5 trillion VND, jumping by 77.4%); North Central and Central Coast areas had 11.6 thousand enterprises, a growth of 13.3% (registered capital of 102.8 trillion VND, expansion of 72.6%).
The number of enterprises completed dissolution procedures in 8 months of 2017 was 7,754 enterprises, rising by 3.7% compared to the same period last year, of which there were 7,146 enterprises with capital size of less than 10 billion VND, accounting for 92.2 %. By kinds of enterprise, the total number of enterprises completed dissolution procedures included 3,197 one-member limited liability companies (sharing 41.2%); 2,265 two-member limited liability companies (accounting for 29.2%); 1,275 private enterprises (making up 16.5%) and 1,017 joint stock companies (accounting for 13.1%).
The number of temporarily ceased enterprises in 8 months was 45,776 enterprises, an increase of 13.3% compared to the same period last year, including 17,231 enterprises ceased for a certain period of time, increasing by 15.5% and 28,545 enterprises temporarily ceased without registration or awaited dissolution, edging up by 12%. The total number of enterprises ceased for a certain period of time, there were 7,171 one-member limited liability companies (accounting for 41.6%); 5,508 two-member limited liability companies (making up 32%); 2,912 joint stock companies (accounting for 16.9%); 1,637 private enterprises (sharing 9.5%) and 3 partnerships companies. For enterprises temporarily ceased without registration or awaited dissolution, there are 12,602 one-member limited liability companies (representing 44.1%); 8,414 two-member limited liability companies (constituting 29.5%); 5,568 joint stock companies (accounting for 19.5%) and 1,961 private enterprises (making up 6.9%).
- Investment
In August, the realized investment of the State budget was estimated at 26,509.8 billion VND, of which: the central capital was 6,468.5 billion VND; the local capital was 20,041.3 billion VND. Generally for 8 months of this year, the implemented investment of the state budget reached 166.4 trillion VND, equaling 56.1% of the yearly plan and increasing by 7.3% over the same period in 2016, including:
– The capital under central management witnessed 38.3 trillion VND, equaling 54.5% of the yearly plan and going up 6% over the same period last year, of which the realized investment of the Ministry of Transportation reached 19.9 trillion VND, equaling 62.9% and rising 42.7%; Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development 3,494 billion VND, equaling 59.6% and decreasing by 15.5%; Ministry of Health 2,485 billion VND, equaling 48.4% and increasing by 37.9%; Ministry of Education and Training 357 billion VND, equaling 50.1% and decreasing by 69.8%; Ministry of Construction 318 billion VND, equaling 65.8% and falling 45.8%; Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism 279 billion VND, equaling 47.5% and reducing 15.9%; Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment 268 billion VND, equaling 45.8% and going down 35.4%; Ministry of Industry and Trade 147 billion VND, equaling 60.3% and decreasing by 46.4%; Ministry of Information and Communications 59 billion VND, equaling 61.3% and going down 22%; Ministry of Science and Technology 56 billion VND, equaling 58.4% and falling 63.2%.
– The capital under local management reached 128.1 trillion VND, equaling 56.5% of the yearly plan and increasing by 7.7% compared to the same period in 2016. Of which, the state budget capital at provincial level reached 87.8 thousand billion VND, equaling 52.7% and going up 4.5%; the state budget capital at district level achieved 33.5 trillion VND, equaling 65.3% and increasing by 16.1%; the state budget capital at commune level gained 6.8 trillion VND, equaling 78.9% and increasing by 11.3%. The realized investment from the State budget of some provinces and cities directly under the Central Gonvernment was as follows: Ha Noi reached 20.4 trillion VND, equaling 62.9% of the yearly plan and jumping up 2.9%. with the same period last year; Ho Chi Minh City 11.2 trillion VND, equaling 32.9% and rising 6.2%; Nghe An 4,147 billion VND, equaling 64.2% and increasing by 16.4%; Binh Duong 3,795 billion, VND equaling 53% and rising 13.2%; Quang Ninh 3,681 billion VND, equaling 50.3% and spreading 17.8%; Vinh Phuc 3,564 billion VND, equaling 59.4% and expanding 16.2%; Hai Phong 3,175 billion VND, equaling 73.2% and increasing by 40.3%; Thanh Hoa 3,124 billion VND, equaling 65.3% and going up 12%.
Foreign direct investment from the beginning of the year to August 20th, 2017 attracted 1,624 newly licensed projects with a registered capital of 13.5 billion USD, a rise of 0.3% in number of projects and an increase of 37.4% of registered capital compared to the same period in 2016. Besides, 773 projects which were licensed from previous years registered to adjust investment capital with an additional capital of 6.4 billion USD, an increase of 40.2% over the same period last year, bringing the total newly registered capital and additional capital in 8 months of 2017 to 19.9 billion USD, a rise of 38.3% over the same period in 2016.
In 8 months of 2017, there were 3,374 turns of capital contribution and share purchase of foreign investors with a total capital contribution 3.5 billion of USD. Thus, total registered capital of new projects, additional capital and investment in the form of capital contribution, share purchase in 8 months reached 23.4 billion USD, a rise of 45.1% over the same period last year. The realized FDI capital in 8 months was estimated at 10.3 billion USD, an increase of 5.1% compared to the same period in 2016.
In 8 months, the electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply attracted the most foreign direct investment with the registered capital of newly licensed projects reaching 5.4 billion USD, accounting for 39.8% of the total newly registered capital; the manufacturing activity witnessed 4.8 billion USD, accounting for 35.9%; the other sectors gained 3.3 billion USD, accounting for 24.3%. If including additional registered capital of projects which were licensed from previous years and capital contribution, share purchase, total foreign direct investment in the manufacturing activity in 8 months of this year achieved 11.7 billion USD, accounting for 50% of the total registered capital; the electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply gained 5.4 billion USD, accounting for 23%; the other sectors reached 6.3 billion USD, accounting for 27%.
In the whole country, there were 54 provinces and centrally-run cities having newly foreign direct investment projects licensed in the first 8 months of this year, of which Thanh Hoa had the largest registered capital with 3,055 million USD, accounting for 22.7% of total newly registered capital; followed by Nam Dinh with 2.125.9 million USD, accounted for 15.8%; Kien Giang 1.342.3 million USD, accounted for 10%; Binh Duong 1,107.7 million USD, accounted for 8.2%; Ho Chi Minh City 792.1 million USD, accounted for 5.9%; Tay Ninh 694.2 million USD, accounted for 5.2%; Ha Noi 609.5 million USD, accounted for 4.5%; Bac Giang with 571.9 million USD, accounted for 4.3%; Dong Nai 344.5 million USD, accounted for 2.6%; Binh Phuoc 294.9 million USD, accounted for 2.2%.
Among the 71 countries and territories with newly licensed projects in Viet Nam for 8 months, Japan ranked the top with 4,829.1 million USD, accounting for 35.9% of the total newly registered capital; followed by Singapore with 2,841 million USD, accounted for 21.1%; South Korea 2,172.6 million USD, accounted for 16.1%; China 1,270.9 million USD, accounted for 9.4%; Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (China) 587 million USD, accounted for 4.4%; Germany 322.4 million USD, accounted for 2.4%.
- State budget revenue and expenditure
Total state budget revenue from the beginning of the year to August 15th, 2017 was estimated at 706.9 trillion VND, equaling 58.3% of the yearly estimate, of which domestic revenue was 556.4 trillion VND, equaling 56.2%; revenue from crude oil achieved 28 trillion VND, equaling 73.1%; budget balance revenue from import and export witnessed 121.1 trillion VND, equaling 67.3%. In domestic revenue, revenue from land use fees reached 63.7 trillion VND, equaling 99.9% of the yearly estimate; personal income tax was 51.2 trillion VND, equaling 63.2%; taxes on trade and non-state services was 110.3 trillion VND, equaling 56.8%; environmental protection tax gained 23.9 trillion VND, equaling 52.8%; taxes on FDI enterprises (excluding crude oil) was 102.3 trillion VND, equaling 50.9%; taxes on state-owned enterprises was 122.4 trillion VND, equaling 42.7%.
Total state budget expenditure from the beginning of the year to August 15th, 2017 recorded 747.3 trillion VND, equaling 53.7% of the yearly estimate, of which recurrent expenditure was 548 trillion VND, equaling 61.1%; interest payment was 65.6 trillion VND, equaling 66.3%; Particularly, expenditure for investment and development reached 131.1 trillion VND, equaling 36.7% of the yearly estimate. Principal payment from the beginning of the year to August 15th, 2017 was estimated at 119.7 trillion VND, equaling 73% of the yearly estimate.
- Trade, prices, transportation and tourism
a. Gross retail sales of goods and services
Gross retail sales of consumer goods and services in August were estimated at 330 trillion VND, an increase of 0.3% over the previous month and an increase of 11.7% over the same period last year, of which: revenue from retail sales of goods reached 249 trillion VND, increased by 1.5% and rose by 12%; revenue from accommodation and catering services reached 39 trillion VND, down 6.8% and 8.4%; revenue from travelling and tourism services reached 3.2 trillion VND, down 4% and 18.9%; revenue from other services gained 38.7 trillion VND, an increase of 0.9% and an increase of 12.6%.
Generally for 8 months, gross retail sales of consumer goods and services reached 2,580.2 trillion VND, an increase of 10.3% compared to the same period last year, if excluding price factor, increasing by 8.9% (higher than the increase of 8.5% in the same period in 2016). By economic activities, retail sales of goods in the first 8 months of this year were estimated at 1,935.6 trillion VND, accounting for 75% of the total and increasing by 10.3% over the same period last year, of which food and foodstuff increased by 10.6%; garment rose by 13.9%; household appliances, tools and equipment by 11.6%; vehicles increased by 7.6%; cultural and educational items decreased by 2.9%.
Revenue from accommodation and catering services in 8 months was estimated at 318 trillion VND, accounting for 12.3% of the total and increasing by 11.3% over the same period last year (higher than the increase of 8.9% in the same period in 2016), in which some provinces achieved a good increase in revenue: Binh Dinh by 20.2%; Thanh Hoa by 17.9%; Ba Ria – Vung Tau by 12.2%; Hanoi by 10.2%; Ho Chi Minh City by 6.5%. Revenue from accommodation, catering services and travelling services increased significantly due to the increase of foreign and domestic tourists in the first 8 months of this year and eating out services were no longer affected by marine environmental pollution occurence in the provinces in the Central in 2016.
In 8 months, travelling and tourism revenue was estimated at 23.1 trillion VND, accounting for 0.9% of the total and increasing by 11% over the same period last year, of which revenue of Bac Giang increased by 25.1%; Khanh Hoa rose by 22.9%; Ho Chi Minh City expanded by 12.2%; Ba Ria – Vung Tau increased by 12%; Ha Noi rose by 5.4%; meanwhile some provinces witnessed a decline as follows: Da Nang by 1.7%; Hau Giang by 4.4%; Soc Trang by 5.8%; Binh Phuoc by 21%; Lao Cai by 23.1%.
Revenue from other services in 8 months of this year was estimated at 303.4 trillion VND, accounting for 11.8% of the total and increasing by 8.9% over the same period last year, of which turnover of Thanh Hoa increased by 18.6%; Lam Dong rose by 16.3%; Quang Ngai expanded by 15.7%; Tuyen Quang went up by 14.7%; Ho Chi Minh City increased by 8.5%; Ha Noi expanded by 5.7%.
b. Export and import of goods
Export turnover of goods in July 2017 reached 17.672 million USD, 172 million USD higher than the estimated figure, of which iron and steel was 68 million USD higher; machinery, instrument and accessory were 63 million USD higher; fishery products were 46 million USD higher; electronic goods, computers and their parts were 35 million USD higher; footwear was 46 million USD lower; phones and their parts were 30 million USD lower than estimated.
Export turnover in August was estimated at 18.20 billion USD, went up by 3% over the previous month, of which the domestic economic sector was 5.33 billion USD, climbed up by 0.6%; FDI sector (including crude oil) attained 12.87 billion USD, edged up by 4%. Export turnover of some products increased over the previous month: Rubber grew by 14.5%; phones and their parts rose by 10.7%; other machinery, instrument and accessory increased by 8.1%; rice rose by 5.6%; wood and wooden products edged up by 3.5%. Compared to the same period last year, August export turnover increased by 13%, of which the domestic economic sector climbed up by 14.8%; FDI sector (including crude oil) rose by 12.3%. Some products achieved a good increase in export turnover: Machinery, instrument and accessory grew by 26.9%; footwear rose by 18.4%; electronic goods, computers and their parts edged up by 16.4%; phones and their parts increased by 14.9%.
In 8 months, export turnover was estimated at 133.50 billion USD, jumped up by 17.9% year on year, of which the domestic economic sector was 37.83 billion USD, jumped up by 15.7%; FDI sector (including crude oil) gained 95.67 billion USD, augmented by 18.9%. Export turnover of some main products continued to increase over the same period last year: Phones and their parts gained 26 billion USD, went up by 14.8%; textile reached 17 billion USD, edged up by 7.2%; electronic goods, computers and their parts made up 15.7 billion USD, soared by 39.3%; footwear reached 9.6 billion USD, jumped up by 13%; machinery, instrument and accessory attained 8.1 billion USD, surged up by 30.1%; fishery products reached 5.2 billion USD, climbed up by 19.2%; wood and wooden products attained 4.9 billion USD, went up by 10.6%; means of transport and spare parts reached 4.6 billion USD, grew by 19.6%; vegetables and fruits made up 2.3 billion USD, soared by 48%; coffee gained 2.3 billion USD, increased by 3.7% (volume decreased by 19.4%). Export turnover of some products declined compared to the same period last year: Pepper reached 900 million USD, went down by 18.5% (volume increased by 23.4%); cassava and cassava products gained 642 million USD, dropped 7.4% (volume increased by 0.1%).
Regarding the exported goods market, the United States was still the largest export market of Vietnam with 8-month turnover of 27.2 billion USD, went up by 9.7% compared to the same period last year; the following was EU with 24.7 billion USD, climbed up by 12.7%; China achieved 18.3 billion USD, soared by 41.8%; ASEAN made up 14.1 billion USD, surged up by 26.6%; Japan reached 10.9 billion USD, went up by 16.1%; South Korea gained 9 billion USD, rose by 24%.
The import turnover of goods in July 2017 attained 17.406 million USD, 394 million USD lower than the estimated figure, of which machinery, instrument and accessory were 133 million USD lower; metals were 58 million USD lower; fabric was 40 million USD lower; chemicals were 24 million USD lower; materials for textile, garment and footwear were 23 million USD lower; electronic goods, computers and their parts were 19 million USD lower than estimated.
Import turnover in August was estimated to reach 17.80 billion USD, edged up by 2.3% over the previous month, of which the domestic economic sector gained 7.30 billion USD, rose by 2%; FDI sector attained 10.50 billion USD, grew by 2.4%. The turnover of some products for production increased compared to the previous month: Phones and their parts augmented by 8.5%; iron and steel increased by 14.1%; plastics went up by 13.7%. Compared to the same period last year, import turnover in August jumped up by 14.5%, of which the domestic economic sector grew by 18.2%; FDI sector rose by 12%.
Generally for 8 months, import turnover was estimated at 135.63 billion USD, climbed up by 22.3% year on year, of which the domestic economic sector reached 54.24 billion USD, went up by 18, 4%; FDI sector gained 81.39 billion USD, rose by 25%. Import turnover of some products for domestic production increased sharply compared to the same period last year: machinery, instrument and accessory achieved 24.1 billion USD, surged up by 33.5%; electronic goods, computers and their parts made up 22.1 billion USD, soared by 24.8%; phones and their parts reached 8.7 billion USD, climbed up by 33.3%; fabric reached 7.4 billion USD, edged up by 8.6%; iron and steel gained 6 billion USD, went up by 16.3% (volume decreased by 16.1%); plastics reached 4.8 billion USD, increased by 23.4% (volume jumped up by 17.2%); petroleum attained 4.5 billion USD, rose by 38.2% (the volume grew by 9.1%); materials for textile, garment and footwear reached 3.7 billion USD, went up by 10%; metals achieved 3.6 billion USD, augmented by 16.7% (volume declined by 16.7%); plastic products reached 3.4 billion USD, rose by 19.7%; chemical products gained 2.9 billion USD, grew by 18.5%; chemicals reached 2.6 billion USD, went up by 28.9%.
Regarding the imported goods market in 8 months of this year, China was still the largest import market of Vietnam with a turnover of 36.4 billion USD, climbed up by 14.7% compared to the same period in 2016; the following was South Korea with 30.2 billion USD, surged up by 47.5%[6]; ASEAN gained 18.1 billion USD, rose by 17.8%; Japan reached 10.5 billion USD, edged up by 8.9%; EU attained 7.9 billion USD, went up by 12.5%; The United States reached 6.2 billion USD, grew by 17.5%.
Trade balance in July witnessed a trade surplus of 266 million USD[7]; trade surplus in August was estimated at 400 million USD. In 8 months of 2017, the trade deficit was 2.13 billion USD, equaled to 1.6% of the total export turnover, of which the domestic economic sector saw a trade deficit of 16.41 billion USD; the FDI sector (including crude oil) witnessed a trade surplus of 14.28 billion USD.
c. Consumer price index, gold price index and US dollar price index
Consumer price index (CPI) in August 2017 increased by 0.92% over the previous month. Among 11 main groups of goods and services, August price indexes of 10 groups increased compared to the previous month, of which medicine and health care services rose the highest with 2.86% (health care services increased by 3.72%) because there were 17 provinces and cities directly under the Central Government[8] adjusting the price of medical services for people without health insurance according to the Health Ministry’s Circular No. 02/2017/TT-BYT dated 15/3/2017 (causing an increase of about 0.14% in CPI). Transport went up by 2.13% due to the impact of 2 adjustments in petroleum and oil prices on 04/8/2017 and 19/8/2017 (causing an increase of about 0.2% in CPI). Group of food and catering services increased by 1.06%, of which food rose by 0.31%[9]; foodstuff grew by 1.64% due to a sharp increase in prices of pork and fresh vegetables[10], led to an augment of 0.37% in CPI; housing and construction materials increased by 0.93% (prices of housing maintenance materials went up by 1.27%; domestic liquified gas prices climbed up by 8.91% from the beginning of August; average oil prices in August 2017 increased by 5.14%); education edged up by 0.57% (education service rose by 0.51%) because there were 5 provinces and cities directly under the Central Government[11] implementing the roadmap to increase tuition fees according to Decree No. 86/2015 / ND-CP dated 02/10/2015 of the Government; garments, hats and footwear went up by 0.09%; beverage and cigarettes rose by 0.07%; household appliances augmented by 0.03%; culture, entertainment and tourism grew by 0.01%; other goods and services increased by 0.10%. Particularly, the group of postal services and telecommunications fell by 0.04%.
Average consumer price index in 8 months of 2017 increased by 3.84% compared to the same period in 2016. Consumer price index in August 2017 rose by 1.23% compared to December 2016 and grew by 3.35 % compared to the same period last year.
Core inflation in August 2017 increased by 0.10% over the previous month and went up by 1.31% compared to the same period last year. The average core inflation in 8 months of 2017 increased by 1.47% compared to the same period in 2016.
Gold price index in August 2017 edged up by 1.11% compared to the previous month; increased by 3.42% compared to December 2016 and decreased by 2.35% year on year. The US dollar price index in August 2017 reduced by 0.03% compared to the previous month; fell by 0.06% compared to December 2016 and increased by 1.83% compared to the same period in 2016.
d. Passenger and freight transport
Passenger transport in August was estimated at 343.9 million passengers, a decline of 0.3% over the previous month and 16.1 billion passengers-kilometers, a reduction of 0.2%. Generally for 8 months, passenger transport reached 2,665 million passengers, an increase of 10.7% compared to the same period last year and 121.1 billion passengers-kilometers, an augment of 9.3%, of which passenger transport by roadway achieved 2.509.6 million passengers, a rise of 11% and 81.4 billion passengers.km, a growth of 8.3%; passenger transport by airway reached 30.8 million passengers, an increase of 14.8% and 34.5 billion passengers-kilometers, a rise of 12.1%; passenger transport by railway gained 7.1 million passengers, a fall of 1.1% and 2.8 billion passengers.kilometers, a growth of 7.9%; passenger transport by seaway reached 4.5 million passengers, an increase of 11.6% and 231.3 million passengers.km, an augment of 12%.
Freight transport in August was estimated at 119.4 million tons, went down by 0.6% over the previous month and 22.5 billion tons-kilometers, went up by 0.6%. Generally for 8 months, freight transport reached 944.8 million tons, rose by 9.7% over the same period last year and 175.4 billion tons.km, grew by 6.4%, of which domestic transport gained 922.9 million tons, edged up by 10% and 87.5 billion tons.km, climbed up by 11.5%; oversea freight transport reached 21.9 million tons, went up by 0.5% and 87.9 billion tons.km, edged up by 1.7%. By type of transport, freight transport by roadway reached 733.4 million tons, increased by 10.2% over the same period last year and 46.4 billion tons.km, rose by 11.8%; freight transport by waterway attained 162.2 million tons, edged up by 7.4% and 34.4 billion tons.km, augmented by 7.9%; freight transport by seaway achieved 45.3 million tons, rose by 10.4% and 91.7 billion tons.km, grew by 3.2%; freight transport by railways gained 3.7 million tons, jumped up by 8.9% and 2.3 billion tons.km, edged up by 11.1%.
e. Foreign visitors to Viet Nam
Foreign visitors to Viet Nam in August were estimated at 1,229.2 thousand visitors, increasing by 18.5% over the previous month, and a year on year increase of 35.1%, the month witnessed the largest number of international visitors ever. Foreign visitors to our country in the month increased strongly because the tourism industry and travel companies took many measures and effectively organized cultural and tourist activities to attract international visitors. In addition, extension of visa exemption policy for nationals from the United Kingdom, France, the Federal Republic of Germany, the Kingdom of Spain and the Republic of Italy[12]contribute to attract a large number of visitors from Western Europe.
Generally for 8 months, foreign visitors to Viet Nam were estimated at 8,472.4 9 thousand visitors, increasing by 29.7% compared to the same period last year, of which visitors coming by airway reached 7,182.5 thousand visitors, an increase of 32.1%; by roadway reached 1,110 thousand visitors, a rise of 21.4%; by seaway reached 179.9 thousand visitors, unchanged over the last year.
In 8 months, visitors from Asia reached 6,325 thousand visitors, an increase of 34.8% compared to the same period last year, of which visitors coming from main markets all increased: visitors from China reached 2,653 3 thousand visitors, an increase of 51.4%; from South Korea achieved 1,500.8 thousand visitors, an increase of 49.3%; from Japan attained 518 thousand visitors, a rise of 7.4%; from Taiwan reached 411.8 thousand visitors, an increase of 20.7%; from Malaysia achieved 295.5 thousand visitors, an increase of 17.1%; from Thailand reached 191.7 thousand visitors, an expansion of 11.8%; from Singapore reached 170.9 thousand visitors, an increase of 7.2%.
Visitors from Europe were estimated at 1,279 thousand visitors, an increase of 20.4% over the same period last year, of which: visitors from the Russian Federation reached 384.4 thousand visitors, an increase of 44.8%; from United Kingdom achieved 194.4 thousand visitors, a rise of 12.5%; from France attained 180 thousand visitors, a growth of 8.4%; from Germany made 131.4 thousand visitors, an expansion of 15.9%; from the Netherlands reached 50.6 thousand visitors, an increase of 14.6%; from Spain attained 43.3 thousand visitors, an increase of 21.5%; from Italy reached 39.6 thousand visitors, an increase of 13.2%.
Visitors from the America reached 565.2 thousand, a rise of 10.8% over the same period last year, of which visitors from the United States reached 424.6 thousand visitors, a growth of 9.8%. Visitors from Oceania reached 280 thousand visitors, a rise of 12%, of which visitors from Australia attained 246.4 thousand visitors, an upturn of 12.5%. Visitors from Africa reached 23.2 thousand visitors, an increase of 29.1% over the same period in 2016.
- SOCIAL ISSUES
a. Food shortage among farmers
In August, the whole country witnessed 3.1 thousand households suffering from food shortage a year on year fall of 67%, corresponding to 12.9 thousand persons suffering from food shortage, declined by 65.8%. Generally, for 8 months of 2017, the whole country witnessed 161.9 thousand households suffering from food shortage a year on year fall of 33.5%, corresponding to 664.2 thousand persons suffering from food shortage, declined by 34.2%. In order to overcome food shortage, from the beginning of the year, all administrative levels, sectors and organizations from central to local level supported these households with 17.3 thousand tons of food and about 1.1 billion VND.
b. Epidemic diseases and food poisoning
In August 2017, the whole country witnessed 11.6 thousand cases of hand, foot and mouth disease; 71 cases of typhoid; 110 cases of viral encephalitis (2 deaths); 2 cases of meningococcal meningitis; 38 cases of Japanese encephalitis (1 death);70 cases of whooping cough; 19 cases of human streptococcus suis infection (2 deaths). Generally, for 8 months of 2017, the whole country witnessed nearly 43.2 thousand cases of hand, foot and mouth disease; 402 cases of typhoid; 495 cases of viral encephalitis (15 deaths); 24 cases of meningococcal meningitis (3 deaths); 131 cases of Japanese encephalitis (4 deaths); 28 cases of of Zika virus infection; 508 cases of whooping cough (5 deaths); and 126 cases of human streptococcus suis infection (11 deaths).
Hemorrhagic fever epidemic was complicated with the number of increasing hospitalized patients. In August there were 27.2 thousand cases (8 deaths), bringing the total number of cases in 8 months this year to 80.6 thousand cases (60.1 thousand cases must be hospitalized), of which 22 deaths.
As of 17 August 2017, the total number of alive HIV-infected persons over the country was 219.8 thousand persons and the number of cases turned to AIDS was 91 thousand persons; the number of persons died of HIV/AIDS nationwide was over 91.9 thousand persons.
In July, there were 13 food poisoning cases, poisoned 276 persons. From 18 December 2016 to 17 August 2017, there were 77 severe food poisoning cases, poisoned 2,231 persons, of which 17 deaths.
c. Traffic accidents
In August (from 16 July to 15 August), there were 1,603 traffic accidents occurred nationwide, including 747 traffic accidents from less serious to more and 856 traffic collisions, causing 661 deaths, 353 injuries and 945 slight injuries. Compared to the same period last year, the number of traffic accidents in August decreased by 9.9% (the number of traffic accidents from less serious to more decreased by 9.7% and the number of traffic collisions went down by 10.2%); the number of deaths declined by 7.7%; the number of injuries dropped 19.8% and the number of slight injuries decreased by 12%. In the month, there were several serious traffic accidents: The accident in Hong Son Commune (Binh Thuan) on 19 July caused 3 deaths and 17 injuries; the accident in Tam Quan Commune (Vinh Phuc) on 28 July left 24 wounded; the accident in Binh Thanh Commune (Đong Thap) on 14 August left 10 wounded.
Generally, for the first 8 months of 2017, there were 12,775 traffic accidents occurred nationwide, including 6,295 traffic accidents from less serious to more and 6,480 traffic collisions, causing 5,422 deaths, 3,153 injuries and 7,381 slight injuries. Compared to the same period last year, the number of traffic accidents in 8 months of this year decreased by 6.3% (traffic accidents from less serious to more decreased by 5.4%; the number of traffic collisions declined by 7.2%); the number of deaths decreased by 5.5%; the number of injuries dropped 16.2% and the number of slight injuries decreased by 8.2%. Of the total of 6,295 traffic accidents from less serious to more over the last 8 months, 6,109 cases (accounted for 97%) occurred on the road, causing 5,285 deaths and 3,107 injuries. There were 104 cases of railway traffic accident, causing 90 deaths and 30 injuries; 82 cases of waterway and maritime traffic accidents, causing 47 deaths and 16 injuries. On average 53 traffic accidents occurred a day in 8 months of 2017 nationwide, including 26 traffic accidents from less serious to more and 27 traffic collisions, caused 22 deaths, 13 injuries and 30 slight injuries.
d. Damages caused by natural disasters
In the month, heavy rains, storms, floods and severe landslides greatly affected many localities in the country. According to preliminary reports, natural disasters caused 63 deaths and missing, 54 injuries; nearly 3.3 thousand houses were collapsed, roof ripped-off and swept away; 7.6 thousand hectares of rice and 8.9 thousand hectares of arable crops were damaged. Total value of loss caused by natural disasters in the month was estimated at 1.8 trillion VND. Particularly rain and flood occurred in the Northern mountainous provinces left 52 deaths, missing and 33 injuries; over 1 thousand houses were hit by landslide, roof ripped-off and collapsed; 5.7 thousand hectares of rice and arable crops were flooded and damaged; estimated damage was 1.4 trillion VND. Son La suffered 15 deaths, missing and 15 injuries; 441 houses were hit by landslide, roof ripped-off and collapsed; 728 ha hectares of rice and arable crops were flooded and damaged and 103.7 km of vehicles road were landslides and swept away; estimated damage was about 708 billion VND. Yen Bai suffered 16 deaths, missing and 13 injuries; 136 houses were hit by landslide, roof ripped-off and collapsed; 150 ha hectares of rice and arable crops were flooded and damaged; estimated damage was 542 billion VND. Right after the rain and flood occurred; the Government directed localities to review and evacuate urgently the households in dangerous areas to a safe place and at the same time actively implemented the assistance to the people in the damaged area, repaired damaged infrastructure, especially roads to quickly stabilize people’s life and production.
Generally, for 8 months of 2017, natural disasters caused 140 deaths and missing, 135 injuries; 29.7 thousand houses were hit by landslides, roof ripped-off, collapsed; 44.3 thousand hectares of rice and 30.3 thousand hectares of arable crops were damaged. Total value of damage in 8 months was estimated at about 4.6 trillion VND.
e. Environment protection, fire and explosion prevention
In August 2017, 1,260 cases of violating regulations of environment protection were found, of which 928 cases were addressed with total fine of over 21.3 billion VND. Generally, for the 8 months of 2017, 12,037 cases of environmental violations across the country were found, of which 9,856 cases were addressed with a total fine of over 145.5 billion VND.
In the month, there were 256 cases of fire and explosion across the country, causing 11 deaths and 29 injuries, with an estimated damage of 49.2 billion VND. In particular, the fire at the confectionery factory in Hoai Duc district, Ha Noi left 8 deaths and 2 wounded. Generally, for the 8 months of 2017, there were 2,915 fires and explosions nationwide, causing 71 deaths and 188 injuries, with an estimated loss of 1,186 billion VND.
GENERAL STATISTICS OFFICE
[1] Of which: area conversion into aqua culturing was 8.1 thousand hectares; conversion into perennial crops was 7.9 thousand hectares; into other annual crops was 540 hectares; Area of unproductive land was 6.3 thousand hectares (Only An Giang lost 5.1 thousand hectares due to late winter-spring harvested, so it was not included in summer-autumn production).
[2] In the first 8 months of 2016, the IIP of the mining and quarrying decreased by 4.8 %; of the manufacturing increased by 10.4 %; of the production and distribution electricity increased by 12.3 %; the water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities increased by 6.8 %.
[3] Source: National business registration information system, Ministry of Planning and Investment.
[4] Compared to the same period last year, the number of enterprises increased by 33.6%; the registered capital increased by 85.1%; the average registered capital of an enterprise rose by 38.5%.
[5] In 8 months of 2016, the number of newly registered enterprises increased by 19.7% over the same period last year; the registered capital increased by 50.9%; The average registered capital of an enterprise rose by 26%.
[6] In 8 months of 2017, Vietnam saw a trade deficit of 18.1 billion USD from China, went down by 3.9% year on year; trade deficit from South Korea was 21.2 billion USD, surged up by 60.4%.
[7] Trade deficit in July was estimated at 300 million USD.
[8] Including: Ha Noi, Bac Ninh, Hai Duong, Cao Bang, Lai Chau, Son La, Thai Nguyen, Phu Tho, Thua Thien-Hue, Đa Nang, Quang Nam, Khanh Hoa, Đak Nong, Đong Nai, Đong Thap, Can Tho, Soc Trang.
[9] Due to the need for rice to served contracts to export 175 thousand tons of rice to Philippines and the effects of rain and flood, rice prices increased in some localities.
[10] Pork prices rose by 5.72% over the previous month; The price of fresh vegetables increased by 3.89%.
[11] Including: Đong Nai, Ho Chi Minh City, Ben Tre, Kien Giang, Can Tho.
[12] Resolution No 46/QD- CP dated 09 June 2017 of the Government.