Over half of Vietnam’s leading companies believe that the economy will not improve considerably in 2013, according to a report released on December 4.
Leading firms pessimistic about new year prospects
The report conducted by Vietnamreport interviewed nearly 200 representatives from companies ranked in 2012 among Vietnam’s top corporate income tax payers (V1000), 500 biggest firms (VNR500) and 500 fastest-growing companies (FAST500).
According to the report, 50% of representatives from the V1000 thought that their business results in 2012 would be worse than 2011. All those interviewed in the banking and financial sector believed that their results in 2012 would also be lower than last year.
The number of enterprises pessimistic about their business activities in 2013 was higher than those with positive forecasts.
Most of the surveyed corporate leaders said that their enterprises were profitable in 2012 thanks to cutting production costs. Only those from the garment and textile sector said that their profits were the result of business and production expansion.
Many companies also pointed out challenges they will face next year, including an unstable business environment, a decrease in consumer demand and higher input prices. They also express their worry about policy implementation and easier access to capital next year. However, they continued to pin their hopes on the government’s inflation-curbing policies.
Around 76% said that they would take loans from banks in 2013, while up to 50% of firms expected to use their own capital next year.
