Vietnam’s Economic Overview in January 2023

HANOI (Reuters) – Vietnam’s consumer price index rose 3.63% in January from a year earlier, while industrial production rose a modest 0.6% due to the Lunar New Year holidays late in the month, the government reported on Wednesday.

The figures were released on the government’s portal one day before the statistics office was scheduled to publish January data for various macroeconomic indicators.

Retail sales increased 9.5% in January compared to the previous year, according to a government statement.

Additionally, the trade surplus for January was reported at $1.23 billion.

The government noted that foreign investment inflows rose 2% in January year-on-year, totaling over $1.5 billion, while foreign investment pledges surged 48.6% annually to $4.3 billion.

“The banking system operated safely and stably,” the government stated.