The HCMC People’s Committee convened a meeting to review the socio-economic situation in May and outline tasks and solutions for June on the morning of June 3. The session was chaired by Mr. Nguyen Van Duoc, Member of the Party Central Committee, Deputy Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee, and Chairman of the HCMC People’s Committee.
Attending the meeting were Mr. Duong Ngoc Hai, Member of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee and Permanent Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee, along with Vice Chairman Vo Van Hoan, Vice Chairman Nguyen Van Dung, and Vice Chairwoman Tran Thi Dieu Thuy.
Opening the session, Chairman Nguyen Van Duoc highlighted statistical data indicating that despite a mixed landscape of opportunities and challenges in the first five months of the year, the city’s economy has demonstrated positive momentum. Industry, trade and services, and tourism remain key drivers of the city's growth. He noted that while foreign direct investment has not yet met expectations, it is trending upwards, with major domestic and international investors expressing growing confidence in the city’s prospects. This, he emphasized, reflects a shift in the mindset and service orientation of the public administration.
He added that the city has been assertively pushing ahead with institutional and administrative restructuring. It is now ready to consolidate the commune-level government structure and terminate the district-level model starting early July, with province-level adjustments to follow by August 15. In addition, major new developments—including the International Financial Center in HCMC, the Can Gio International Transshipment Port, and a multipurpose high-tech center—are expected to become new engines for the city's future growth.
However, Chairman Nguyen Van Duoc also pointed out a number of challenging indicators, such as GRDP growth, sluggish public investment disbursement (just 10.2 percent), and underperforming State budget revenues. He urged participants to focus discussions on identifying underlying causes and proposing targeted solutions.
In a report delivered at the meeting, Director of the Department of Finance Le Thi Huynh Mai underscored that HCMC’s socio-economic indicators in May and throughout the first five months continued to show strong performance. Key economic indicators recorded healthy growth both month-on-month and year-on-year. Progress on major infrastructure and transport projects has also accelerated.
Retail sales and consumer service revenues in May were estimated at VND113.36 trillion, up 19 percent year-on-year. The five-month cumulative total reached VND544.45 trillion, an increase of 16.8 percent from the same period in 2024.
Export turnover rose 3.4 percent compared to April and totaled $20.36 billion over five months, up 16.1 percent year-on-year. The industrial production index (IIP) in May rose 5.1 percent from the previous month and 9.4 percent compared to May 2024; the five-month figure increased 8.2 percent, with the four key industries also recording a growth rate of 8.2 percent.
Total State budget revenue in the first five months exceeded VND245.7 trillion, reaching 47.26 percent of the annual target, up 4.38 percent year-on-year.
Nevertheless, some challenges persist. Public investment disbursement continues to lag behind plan, while the number of dissolved and temporarily suspended businesses has increased. Administrative restructuring—merging commune and province levels—has had some impact on civil servants' morale and performance.
As of May 28, according to the State Treasury Region II, HCMC had disbursed VND8.71 trillion in public investment, equal to just 10.2 percent of the 2025 plan.
The city saw 13,894 new business registrations with total registered capital of VND79.63 trillion—a drop of 31.4 percent in number and 54 percent in capital from the same period last year. However, additional registered capital reached VND234.13 trillion, up 89.7 percent. Overall, the total registered and additional capital in the first five months of 2025 hit VND313.76 trillion, an increase of 5.9 percent.
A total of 1,534 businesses completed dissolution procedures, up 8.4 percent year-on-year, while 20,382 businesses suspended operations, a 6.7 percent rise. Meanwhile, 7,583 businesses resumed operations—unchanged from the same period last year.
Mr. Lam Dinh Thang, Director of the Department of Science and Technology, noted that, with significant progress in innovation, HCMC rose one spot to 110th in the 2025 Global Innovation Ecosystem Ranking and, for the first time, entered the Top 5 startup ecosystems in Southeast Asia. The city has especially excelled in fintech, with rapid growth, and now ranks in the global Top 30 for blockchain and second in the region.
The contribution of Total Factor Productivity (TFP) to GRDP has been increasing steadily, with science and technology accounting for 74 percent of TFP growth.
In May, HCMC completed upgrades and restructuring of digital infrastructure and platforms to support the two-tier local government model and upcoming province-level reorganization. The city launched a digital governance portal for receiving and resolving local administrative issues and activated a centralized monitoring system for tracking implementation of Resolution 57-NQ/TW.
For June, the Department of Science and Technology has proposed new policies to advance scientific and technological development, innovation, and digital transformation. These include initiatives to attract and retain high-level talent, improve infrastructure investment, and enhance the performance of the city's Innovation Startup Center.
The department also plans to submit a comprehensive report on HCMC’s innovation ecosystem and a roadmap to place the city among the top 100 most dynamic global ecosystems. It will also propose guidelines to ensure a minimum of 3 percent of GRDP is allocated to science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation, along with launching a pilot AI training program for high school students.
