More than 47.3 percent of surveyed firms said that they anticipated better business compared to the last quarter of 2018, and 37.8 percent expected stable business.
Only 14.9 per cent anticipated their business and operation would be more difficult.
The inventory of the manufacturing and processing industry sits at 64.4 percent, the lowest rMushrooms being processed at Thanh Cao Kinoko Import Export Company Limited. A majority of firms were optimistic about their business heading into the first quarter of 2019. - VNA/VNS Photo Vũ Sinh
Another survey of construction firms showed 59.6 percent predicted improved or stable business in the first quarter of 2019 while the rest expected more difficulties.
According to the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Vietnamese firms were also optimistic about their business prospects in 2019 with 51 percent saying they had plans to expand.
A recent survey by Vietnam Supply Chain also found that more than 80 percent of surveyed firms believed 2019 would be a better year than 2018. Only 7.7 percent were worried 2019 would be worse while 9 percent were not sure.
GSO’s general director Nguyễn Bích Lâm said business confidence had improved significantly thanks to the stable macroeconomic situation and improved business climate.The number of new firms also increased for the third consecutive year to set new records.
More than 131,000 new firms were established in 2018, an increase of 3.5 percent over the record of 127,000 new firms set in 2017.
On average, each new firm had a registered capital of VND11.3 billion (USD491,000), up by 10.2 percent over last year.
Firms registered to pump a total of more than VND3.88 quadrillion into the economy in 2018.
However, GSO noted the number of firms temporarily halting operations rose by a whopping 49.7 percent against 2017. The considerable rise in this number was partly due to business registration offices nationwide conducting reviews and eliminating firms which did not report any operations for a long time.The number of firms which were dissolved in 2018 was more than 16,300; 91 percent of them had registered capital of below VND10 billion.
Phạm Đình Thúy, Director of GSO’s Industry Statistics Department, said he believed the Government’s target of having one million firms by 2020 was within reach. He said that as of July 1, 2018, there were already 720,000 firms.
