Vietnam economy gallops at 6.42% in H1

Industry and construction and services were the main drivers of the growth, the General Statistics Office said at a press conference Saturday morning.

The former grew by 7.51%, up from 1.13% a year ago. It accounted for 44.28% of the economy’s growth.

Services grew by 6.64% and contributed 49.76%. The sector saw a sharp increase in exports thanks to recovery in global demand. Agriculture, forestry and fisheries grew by 3.38%.

Foreign trade rose by 15.7% year-on-year to US$368.53 billion in the first half. It included a surplus of $11.63 billion, a 13.5% decline.

The U.S. was the largest export market, accounting for $54.3 billion.

China was the largest source of goods and services for Vietnam, with imports being worth $67 billion.

Some 119,600 new businesses entered the market or resumed operations, while 110,300 shut down.

A survey of the processing and manufacturing industry found 37.4% of businesses saying their performance had improved in the second quarter.

The consumer price index rose by 4.08% during the half.