Presiding over a meeting on socioeconomic condition in April and the first four moths of 2019, Mr. Phong said that production and processing has great potential in HCM. The investment situation in the first four months required the city to improve investment environment, have reasonable policies and find large investors in production and processing to create added value, increase competitive ability and growth rate for the city.

Mr. Phong named a slew of projects in difficulties comprising Lotte in District 2, a complex in District 2’s Thu Thiem new urban area, waste to energy project, exhibition center and Binh Quoi-Thanh Da in Binh Thanh District.

Implementation of these projects has been long lasting without any strong move in the first four months. He questioned agencies about reasons for the delay and asked them to select some major projects to focus on solving difficulties and facilitate businesses’ development investment.

Reporting at the meeting, director of the Department of Planning and Investment Le Thi Huynh Mai said that in the first four months of 2019, HCMC had over 13,000 newly established businesses with the total registered capital of nearly VND212 trillion (US$9.08 billion). Of these, the number of wholesale and retail, automobile, motorbike and motor vehicle repair firms account for 39 percent.

The number of real estate firms was least accounting for only 7 percent but their registered capital was highest making up 47 percent of total investment capital. In the meantime, capital invested in processing and manufacturing made up 7 percent.

At the meeting, director of the Department of Industry and Trade Pham Thanh Kien said that electricity and petrol price increase has affected businesses but it is not much and has not impacted production yet.

Most of businesses said that petrol price increase influenced production and trading but the influence was not much because petrol accounted for 1 percent of cost price structure.

The agency has worked with some businesses using much electricity such as mechanic firms who said that the price hike affected them especially to contracts signed at the beginning of the year. Still, the impact was not much. They had been working with the electricity industry to seek way to save energy. SGGP

Hai Anh