3:26:37 PM | 7/8/2005
At a meeting yesterday in Ho Chi Minh City with southern provincial representatives and businesses, Prime Minister Phan Van Khai set out eight measures to boost the country's industrial growth.
To enhance industrial production in the last nine months of this year, the Ministry of Industry should try to forecast which goods and products will sell well in local and overseas markets.
The government will allow the timely adjustment of prices of some essential goods such as steel, cement and coal to ensure that enterprises can receive reasonable profits and will consider lowering port, airport, road and telecom fees to help cut production costs.
Prime Minister asked government agencies to do away with any legal documents that hinder the operation of businesses.
Cutting unreasonable fees and reducing cost of materials and management fees will help enterprises enhance their competitiveness.
Khai also urged ministries and agencies to help enterprises expand their overseas markets, quickly restructure state-owned enterprises and speed up equitization processes.
Ministries and branches should also strengthen dialogues with enterprises to urgently solve any difficulties raised.
“The industrial sector scored low growth of 14.4 per cent in the first quarter of this year. If the situation is not improved, the sector will not reach the target set for the year,” said Prime Minister.
Price hikes on materials, the prolong drought and harsh competition from Chinese goods are attributed to the low growth rate in the southern region.
According to the Ministry of Industry, 21 cities and provinces in the southeastern region and the Mekong River Delta make up 73 per cent of the sector’s total industrial production value. Therefore, any fluctuations in industrial production of the two regions directly affect the whole sector.
The southern key economic region, which plays an important role in national economic development, should concentrate its efforts on removing obstacles and strengthening organization to ensure rapid and sustainable growth in industrial production.
The southern region’s industrial production reached VND57.65 trillion (US$3.6 billion), a year-on-year increase of 18.63 per cent.
Provinces that attained a high growth rate in industrial production were Binh Duong with 33 per cent, Ba Ria-Vung Tau 23.87 per cent and Dong Nai 22.9 per cent.
Ho Chi Minh City gained a growth rate of only 12.73 per cent while Binh Phuoc’s industrial production dropped by 15.22 per cent compared with the same period of last year.
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