Vietnam’s retail sales grew 2.6 per cent last year, the lowest growth in nine years, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).
The country’s retail revenue reached US$219.5 billion last year, increasing 2.6 per cent despite the impact of Covid-19. Although the figure illustrates the lowest increase in nine years, given the pandemic situation, Vietnam still has one of the best performances in the region in the retail sector.
Sales of consumer goods exceeded US$168.3 billion, surging 7 per cent year on year.
Sectors seeing the strongest growth include food and home appliances with 10.7 per cent and 7.5 per cent respectively. Meanwhile the garment sector rose 3 per cent and cultural and educational services up 1 per cent.
However, Vietnam total retail sales figures also include services for industries such as travel and accommodation revenue, which explain the slight growth during the year.
GSO said accommodation and catering services dropped by 13 per cent year-on-year, making up 10 percent of the retail revenue.
VNDirect Securities forecast that the nation’s retail sales growth would bounce back to pre-pandemic levels next year with 8.5 to 9 per cent growth year-on-year.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade expected retail sales of goods and services to increase around 9 to 9.5 per cent annually over the next five years and the country’s retail sales reach US$ 350 billion in 2025.
