HANOI: Total retail sales of Viet Nam’s goods and services reached VND2,116.67 trillion (US$94 billion), a 10.1 per cent increase over the same period last year, or 9.1 per cent if inflation is excluded.
Among the total, retail sales of goods contributed three-fourth, with a value of $74.8 billion, increasing by 10.8 per cent. Retail sales of accommodations, restaurants and catering services posted growths of 11.7 per cent, while the tourism sector accounted for 0.9 per cent
According to GSO expert Vu Manh Ha, the purchasing power showed improvements thanks to an abundant supply, stable prices and diversified and high quality products, along with many promotional programmes conducted by companies.
Key consumer products and essential services saw stable prices in the first 8 months of the year. Restaurants witnessed slight increases at 0.1 per cent, transport services were up 2.12 per cent, healthcare services up 0.01 per cent, drugs rose by 0.03 per cent, soft drinks were up 0.07 per cent and electricity, tap water and gas were down 0.45 per cent. Further, Ha attributed the retail sales increase to the decrease in the consumer price index.
He noted that in the remaining months, total retail sales would improve as the supply of products and consumer goods continue to stabilise. Purchasing power was one of the indicators that reflected the macroeconomic recovery in the first eight month of this year.
