Although 2023 is forecast to see many difficulties, experts expect this is a recovery year of the retail sector after COVID-19 pandemic as there are many signs showing the return of investors and higher demands.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), the scale of the Vietnamese retail market is 142 billion USD, which is expected to reach 350 billion USD in 2025, with contributions of 59% to total GDP.

Last year, the total revenue from retail sales of goods and services rose 21%, exceeding the target of 8%.

A survey by Vietnam Report showed that over 53.8% of total retail firms enjoyed similar and higher business results compared to the pre-pandemic level.

Experts held that growth of retail sales is being supported by rise in income and the strong recovery of the tourism sector as well as relevant sectors such as transport and accommodations, as well as the effectiveness of inflation control measures.

Particularly, from now to the Lunar New Year (Tet) Festival, which falls in late January, consumers are predicted to loosen their wallet dramatically.

At the same time, there are signs of vibrant retail activities as many foreign investors have announced their plans to return after COVID-19.

Recently, Thailand’s Central Retail said that it will pump additional 20 trillion VND (852.87 million USD) into the Vietnamese market in the next five years, pushing its investments in Vietnam in the 2022-2026 period to 65 trillion VND. With this plan, Central Retail will raise their coverage from 40 localities currently to 55.

Meanwhile, Japanese giant retailer Aeon Group plans to build another megamall in Hanoi, raising its total trade centres in Vietnam to 20.

Phung Trung Kien, Founder of Vietnam Holdings Inc., said that retail businesses will see good growth in early 2023, especially those trading consumer goods thanks to the Lunar New Year Festival.

In 2023, four trade centres are scheduled to be launched - Central Premium plaza, Vincom Megamall Grand Park, Sunrise City Central and Emart 2 with total area of over 116,000 sq.m.

Many experts predicted that this year, retailers will expand their selling channels, bringing their products to different trading platforms to optimise online retail channels.

MoIT Deputy Minister Do Thang Hai said that in the time to come, the ministry will coordinate with other ministries and localities to keep a close eye on the developments of the market, ensuring the supply of commodities, especially during Tet. At the same time, it will apply measures to control consumer price index (CPI), he said./.