HCMC eyes economic growth of 6.5% in Q1

Its economy only grew at 0.7% in the first quarter of last year, and to avoid a repeat, it is promoting public investment, domestic consumption, digital transformation, regional linkages, and e-commerce, Nguyen Van Dung, deputy chairman of its people’s committee, said Thursday at a meeting.

This year the city plans to spend 95% of the public investment allocation of VND78.75 trillion (US$3.15 billion), he said.

The Ho Chi Minh City Institute for Development Studies believed if the domestic and international economic situations improve, risk factors are well controlled, and confidence among the public and businesses improves, the economy could achieve 6.56% growth in the first quarter.

According to the people’s committee, retail sales of consumer goods and services surged by 24.4% year-on-year in January.

Last year the city economy grew by 5.8%.