Hanoi (VNA)♚ – Vietnam’s industrial production index (IPI) in August grew 7.3 percent month on month and posted a 6.9 percent rise in the first eight months of 2016, lower than the 9.8 percent rate recorded in the same period last year due to a continuous downturn in production of the mining, processing and manufacturing industries.

According to the General Statistics Office (GSO), in the January-August period, the IPI of the mining industry fell 3.8 percent, while the production of crude oil and natural gas dropped 5.5 percent. At the same time, the IPI of the pharmaceuticals, pharmaceutical chemistry, leather and chemical industries rose modestly between 2.6-5.4 percent. Meanwhile, a surge of 16.9 percent was seen in the IPI of the heavy metal industry with, followed by the textile industry with 15.5 percent, engined vehicles production with 15.3 percent, and electronic, computer and optical products with 14.1 percent. In the reviewed period, the production of some industrial products soared compared to the same period last year, with the highest rise in television at 83.2 percent, steel sheet at 22.3 percent, iron and crude steel at 15.9 percent, and cement at 15.2 percent. Particularly, crude oil exploitation was down 7.9 percent, while decreases of 9.1 percent and 9.6 percent were recorded in the production of NPK fertilizer and mobile phones, respectively. The GSO also reported that the central province of Quang Nam posted the highest IPI rise at 32.2 percent, followed by the northern province of Thai Nguyen with 31.1 percent; Hai Phong, 16.3 percent; Da Nang, 11.5 percent; and Can Tho, 11.4 percent. The IPI of Binh Duong, Dong Nai, Bac Ninh and Hai Duong provinces as well as Ho Chi Minh City was up between 6.8 and 8.9 percent. The office also revealed that as of August 1, inventory index of the processing and manufacturing sectors expanded 8.9 percent year on year. Low inventory was seen in textile, metal, chemistry and chemical products, pharmaceuticals and pharmaceutical chemistry, and leather. However, the index escalated 130 percent in electronic products, computers and optical products, 30.9 percent in engined vehicles, 26.4 percent in paper and paper products, 24.4 percent in rubber and plastic products, and 20.7 percent in other nonmetallic minerals, reported the office.-VNA