The opening seven months of the year saw the index of industrial production (IIP) in Ho Chi Minh City suffer an annual drop of 5.5% due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, according to the municipal Department of Industry and Trade.

The index in July went against the year’s trend by recording a monthly increase of 8.6%, including manufacturing and processing which rose by 9% and electricity production and distribution with an increase of 3.9%.

Despite these positive figures, four key industries suffered a fall of 0.9% over the seven-month period, but rose by more than 4.6 percentage points from the IIP, including electronics, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals.

Nguyen Phuong Dong, Deputy Director of the Department of Industry and Trade, underlined the need to issue breakthrough solutions and policies aimed at supporting enterprises due to some markets yet to reopen their doors as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Furthermore, local exports via border gates nationwide enjoyed a surge of 5.8% to US$24.7 billion over the reviewed period. However, shipments to European markets only reached US$2.74 billion, representing a decline of 7% on-year.

As such, China remains the southern city’s largest importer with a value of over US$6 billion, marking an annual rise of 44.7%, followed by the United States and Japan.

The total retail value of goods and services exceeded VND718.1 trillion during the first seven months of the year, an annual fall of 3.8% during the period, including accommodation and dining services recording drops of 45.1% and travelling falling by 74.9%.

According to experts, domestic enterprises should capitalise on opportunities from domestic and foreign markets by striving to meet technical requirements such as clearly stating the origin of products and intellectual property protection.