Ho Chi Minh City’s economy grows 7.76% in first half of 2017

HCMC Chairman Nguyen Thanh Phong said this figure means the southern city is likely to achieve its set target of 8.4-8.7% for the full year.

During the period, the HCMC government also earned VND173 trillion (US$7.6 billion) in tax revenues, equivalent to 49.5% of its yearly target.

A breakdown of sectors showed the services sector was the largest contributor to HCMC’s economic output at 57.8%, followed by industrial production and construction at 23.8%. Agriculture accounted for only 0.7% of total output.

During the period, services grew by 7.38%, industrial production and construction increased by 7.17% and agriculture was up by 5.93%.

Director of the HCMC Department of Industry and Trade Pham Thanh Kien said the city’s index of industrial production rose by an estimated 7.5% in the first half of 2017, the highest level in the last five years.

The encouraging figure came as a result of HCMC’s efforts to foster industrial growth, notably measures to remove difficulties for enterprises in terms of access to capital, land and other supportive programmes.

In the last six months, the city licensed the establishment of more than 18,000 enterprises with capital totalling VND227 trillion (US$10 billion) while existing enterprises also filed to increase their capital by VND265 trillion (US$11.66 billion).

HCMC also granted licences to 340 new foreign-invested projects, mostly in the manufacturing sector, helping the city to attract US$2.15 billion in both new and additional FDI capital.