Hanoi (VNA) - Total revenue from retail sales andservices topped 160 billion USD during the first 11 months of 2017, surging10.7 percent year-on-year, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

Excluding inflation, the increase is 9.5 percent, reaching the highest ratethis year, against the growth rate at 6.2 percent in the first quarter, 8.4percent in the first half of the year, 9.2 percent in the first nine months and9.4 percent in the first 10 months of the year, GSO said.

The increase in people’s purchasing power has been attributed to the highconsumer demand, as the consumer price index grew slowly in 11 months,only by half of the growth rate against the same period last year, Vu Manh Ha,an expert at GSO’s Internal Economics Department, said.

During the first 11 months, the total retail sales of goods accounted for 75percent of the total to reach 120 billion USD, a year-on-year increase of 10.8percent. Retail sales of cars were up by 17.8 percent, wooden products andbuilding materials went up 12.5 percent, all kinds of gasoline increased by11.8 percent and food and foodstuff were up by 10.4 percent.

Notably, the sales of construction materials rose sharply, especially materialsused for repairing houses damaged by floods and storms in the central region ofVietnam. The sales of cars also increased due to many automotive companiesoffering discount on car prices. Gasoline prices have increased several timesin the reviewed period.

Retail sales of accommodation, restaurant and catering services rankedsecond with an 11.2 percent increase to touch nearly 20 billion USD.
Travelservices also accounted for an increase of 16.2 percent in spite havinglow value. The sales of other services accounted for 11.8 percent of the totalretail sales and services, posting a year-on-year rise of 9.6 percent.

Some localities recorded an encouraging growth in retail revenue,including Quang Ninh, Binh Duong, Lao Cai, Binh Phuoc, with increases from18 percent to over 19.2 percent.

Meanwhile, Thanh Hoa, Ba Ria Vung Tau, Lam Dong and Da Lat led the sales ofaccommodation, restaurants and catering services, increasing by between 12 and17 percent.

Thanh Hoa and Khanh Hoa, which are famous for their beautiful beaches, andHanoi and HCM City gained the highest revenue from tourism services, some 12-20percent increase.

In a draft strategy on domestic trade development released recently, theMinistry of Industry and Trade forecast that the revenue of Vietnam’s retailsales market will reach over 484 billion USD by 2025 and some 1.938 trillion USDby 2035.-VNA