Vietnam's GDP for Q1 2023 grows 3.32%, nears 13-year low: GSO

03 Apr '23

2 min read

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Vietnam's GDP growth for the first quarter (Q1) of 2023 was 3.32 per cent, slightly higher than Q1 2020 but close to a 13-year low.
Foreign direct investment declined by 38.8 per cent, and the number of newly established businesses decreased by 5.4 per cent YoY.
The CPI for Q1 increased by 4.18 per cent YoY, and core inflation was up by 5.01 per cent.

Gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the first quarter (Q1) of 2023 in Vietnam stood at 3.32 per cent, as per the General Statistics Office (GSO). The figure is higher than the 3.21 per cent growth rate recorded in Q1 2020 but nears the 13-year lowest level, indicating a slow economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The industrial sector experienced a decline of 0.4 per cent during the reviewed period, while the added value throughout the same period decreased by 0.82 per cent over the same period last year, according to local media reports.

Nguyen Thi Huong, the general director of GSO, pointed out that the added value decline was the steepest compared to the growth rates recorded between 2011 and 2023, reducing 0.28 percentage points as part of the entire economy’s total added value. The decrease was attributed to difficulties occurring in the world economy due to high input production costs and a fall in the number of export orders.

Despite the slow economic recovery, some positive developments were noted in the report. The total retail sales of consumer goods and services reached an estimated VND 1.5 million billion, up 13.9 per cent against the same period from last year. Additionally, the country posted a trade surplus of $4.07 billion, with export turnover of goods estimated at $79.17 billion, a drop of 11.9 per cent year-on-year, while import turnover of goods stood at $75.1 billion, down 14.7 per cent year-on-year.

Investment in the country was also impacted, with Vietnam attracting nearly $5.45 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) in the first quarter of the year, down 38.8 per cent compared to the same period last year. The number of newly established businesses and those returning to operation was down by 5.4 per cent over the same period last year, while the number of enterprises withdrawing from the market increased by 17.4 per cent year-on-year, with 60,200 firms reported to have withdrawn from the market.

Vietnam’s consumer price index (CPI) in March fell 0.23 per cent month-on-month (MoM), while the CPI for the first quarter rose 4.18 per cent against the same period last year with core inflation up by 5.01 per cent. The US retained its position as the Southeast Asian nation’s largest export market, with an estimated turnover of $20.6 billion, while China stayed its biggest importer, with a turnover of $23.6 billion.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)

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