Hanoi City's Trade Sector Remains Weaknesses
Despite its achievements, trade sector of Hanoi capital city still shows some shortcomings such as slow expansion of market systems, lack of modern trade centres, and inappropriate growth rate of export turnover, according to the meeting held by the Hanoi Trade Department recently.
At present, construction and upgrading of existing markets in the city are slowly being carried out. Under-standard supermarkets and trade centres are being built spontaneously. The number of large-scale supermarkets and trade centres remains low in the city.
The city’s annual export turnover growth rate is unable to reach its target of 16-18 per cent set at the municipal party committee meeting (The city gained an annual growth rate at only 12 per cent on average for 2001-2004 period). Process of export structure transference has slowed down in recent years. The situation is clearly seen in the key industrial sectors including electricity-electronics-informatics, metallic-mechanics, garment-textile-footwear, processed food and new materials.
Raw and preliminarily-processed rice, coffee, pepper and tea are the city's major farm produce export items whose revenue makes up for the largest proportion of the city’s total export turnover. Following these are the garment and textile industry with a proportion of 23.2 per cent, electronics and printer production 15.7 per cent (mostly manufactured-by-foreign-invested-company products), and footwear at 4.3 per cent (mostly hand-made products). Meanwhile, the proportion of such owning high added value items as handicrafts, metallic-mechanic products, and processed food remains low (about 10 per cent) of the city’s export turnover.
The state sector is reported to hold up a large proportion of 60 per cent in economic structure involved in export activities and be the major contributor to the city’s total export turnover. However, the growth rate of the sector still stands at a low level.
Foreign-invested sector makes up for 21.5 per cent of the city's total export turnover while that of whole country is more than 30 per cent, excluding crude oil. The number of exporters remains low in the city. Only 1,000 out of 25,000 enterprises based in Hanoi have participated in exporting activities with an average export turnover of US$2 million each. Of these exporters, just 40 enterprises each have gained earnings of over US$10 million from exports so far.
In addition, the relation between state-owned and local enterprises (including private-owned and foreign-invested ones) is often loosely managed, failing to generate an overall strength in expanding market and enhancing the competitiveness and quality of export commodities. Trade promotion activities have yet to bring in a good results and are unable to meet demands of the enterprises in trade and production development.
According to the Deputy Minister of Trade Phan The Rue, in order to gain an impressive growth in quality and size, it is essential that the Hanoi trade sector build up an exciting policy to lure investments from both local and foreign sources; balance investments in production as well as in trade infrastructure; improve the competence of Hanoi Trade Department, especially Hanoi Trade Promotion Bureau, which is the consultant body to the municipal committee, and people's council and committee in trading activities; upholding the role of Hanoi Trade Corporation in exporting key products and restructuring a modern and centrally-oriented goods distribution system; and further promoting economic cooperation between Hanoi and provinces in the northern key economic zone as well as those along Yunnan-Hanoi-Haiphong economic corridor.
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