Consumer Demand Rebounds: Total Retail Sales of Goods and Consumer Service Revenue in March 2021 Rose 9.2% Year-on-Year
A recent report by the General Statistics Office (GSO) shows that the retail trade of goods and consumer services trended toward recovery in March 2021 as the Covid-19 pandemic was brought under control.
Specifically, consumer demand has rebounded, with the total retail sales of goods and consumer service revenue in March 2021 rising by 9.2% year-on-year (compared to a 5.4% decline in the same period of 2020).
Breaking this down, the retail sales of goods reached 322.8 trillion VND, up 8.5%; accommodation and catering services revenue hit 40.2 trillion VND, up 13.6%; travel and tourism revenue stood at 845 billion VND, down 34.6%; and revenue from other services reached 41.3 trillion VND, up 11.4%.
For the first quarter (Q1) of 2021 as a whole, the total retail sales of goods and consumer service revenue reached 1,291.1 trillion VND, an increase of 5.1% year-on-year, or a 4.42% increase if excluding the price factor (compared to a 0.01% decrease in the same period of 2020).
In detail, Q1 retail sales of goods were estimated at 1,033.2 trillion VND, accounting for 80.1% of the total and increasing by 6.8% year-on-year. Within this category, food and foodstuffs rose by 9.5%; cultural and educational items by 5.8%; household appliances, tools, and equipment by 5.3%; garments by 4.5%; and means of transport by 1.4%.
Q1 retail sales of goods in certain localities saw year-on-year growth, including Hai Phong (up 11.3%), Can Tho (10.8%), Hanoi (8%), Da Nang (7.9%), Thanh Hoa (6.7%), Quang Nam and Quang Ngai (both 6.6%), Dong Nai (5.7%), Dak Lak (5.5%), Hung Yen (5.3%), and Bac Ninh (1.8%).
Additionally, Q1/2021 accommodation and catering services revenue was estimated at 124 trillion VND, accounting for 9.6% of the total, which represents a 3% year-on-year decrease (compared to an 8.5% drop in Q1/2020). Revenue for accommodation and catering services compared to the same period last year varied by locality: Ba Ria - Vung Tau increased by 1.1%, while decreases were seen in Quang Ninh (-12.7%), Hanoi (-8%), Lam Dong (-7.2%), Da Nang (-6%), Hai Phong (-3.9%), Ho Chi Minh City (-3.5%), and Kien Giang (-1%).
Revenue from other services in Q1/2021 was estimated at 130.8 trillion VND, accounting for 10.1% of the total, reflecting a 3.9% increase compared to Q1/2020. Specifically, revenue grew in Hai Phong (16.4%), Quang Ninh (15.1%), Can Tho (7.7%), Da Nang (4.8%), Hanoi (2.5%), and Ho Chi Minh City (0.9%), but fell in Lao Cai (-10.5%) and Gia Lai (-28.5%).
Notably, as the tourism industry has yet to recover, Q1 travel and tourism revenue was estimated at just 3.1 trillion VND, accounting for 0.2% of the total—a sharp 60.1% year-on-year decline (compared to a 24.8% decrease in Q1/2020).
Localities experiencing a year-on-year decline in Q1 travel and tourism revenue include Da Nang (-61.3%), Ho Chi Minh City (-59.5%), Hanoi (-30.1%), Ba Ria - Vung Tau (-23.1%), Hai Phong (-20.5%), Can Tho (-16.8%), and Quang Ninh (-4.5%).
Source: https://vneconomy.vn/ban-le-hang-hoa-va-dich-vu-tieu-dung-bat-dau-phuc-hoi.htm