Nguyen Van Duoc made this observation at Ho Chi Minh City's socio-economic meeting on the afternoon of 9/9. "Investors are confidently returning to the city, and the investment environment has become more attractive," he assessed.
According to the Ho Chi Minh City Statistics Office, the city attracted nearly 6.9 billion USD in foreign direct investment (FDI) in the first 8 months of the year, up 58% year-on-year. This includes 1,156 newly licensed projects with a total registered capital of over 1.3 billion USD.
Over 300 projects received additional capital, totaling 2.4 billion USD. Over 1,500 cases involved foreign investors contributing capital or acquiring shares in domestic enterprises, with registered capital exceeding 2.9 billion USD.
The chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee said that the city has addressed over 63% of businesses' difficulties. This has given investors more confidence to invest in the city.
"In the information technology sector, Ho Chi Minh City has become a magnet, attracting large investors in semiconductors and big data," he added.
 |
Nguyen Van Duoc at the Ho Chi Minh City Socio-Economic meeting on the afternoon of 9/9. Photo: An Phuong |
Nguyen Van Duoc at the Ho Chi Minh City Socio-Economic meeting on the afternoon of 9/9. Photo: An Phuong
In addition to attracting FDI, other economic indicators also maintained positive growth. Total retail sales of goods and consumer service revenue in August increased by 16.3%.
The industrial production index (IIP) increased by 6% over 8 months. Revenue from land use tax increased dramatically, by 453.3% compared to the same period in 2024.
However, the local business environment has not seen significant improvement. New business registrations decreased by 13.9% in terms of licenses and 35.1% in terms of capital. For every 10 businesses entering the market, 7 withdrew.
Tran Phuoc Tuong, deputy director of the Ho Chi Minh City Statistics Office, noted the decreasing size of businesses. "The average registered capital is currently 6.1 billion VND per business, down nearly 25% compared to the same period in 2024," he stated.
According to Tuong, to achieve the target of 8.5% GRDP growth in 2025, the city must grow by 10.2% and 10.4% in the remaining two quarters, respectively. "Currently, the service sector is likely to achieve its growth target, but manufacturing still faces significant challenges," he said.
Chairman Nguyen Van Duoc acknowledged the difficulty of achieving over 10% growth in each of the remaining quarters. He urged relevant departments to focus on implementing existing solutions and plans. To further reform administrative procedures, he requested thorough investment in 38 public administration centers, from software and hardware to personnel, with at least 5 support staff to process business applications. This investment is to be completed in September.
Accelerating public investment disbursement is another solution the city is focusing on. As of 29/8, Ho Chi Minh City disbursed over 51,500 billion VND, reaching 43.3% of the capital plan assigned by the Prime Minister. According to Duoc, after a period of acceleration, public investment disbursement has slowed down in the past two months.
"Public investment disbursement is not sustainable," he assessed. He requested communes and wards to pay particular attention to site clearance for road, highway, railway, and civil works, and to propose key projects for next year.
Vien Thong
