At a press conference in Hanoi on October 3 to announce the socio-economic situation in the third quarter and the first nine months of 2026, Ms. Nguyen Thi Huong, Director General of the Statistics Office, said the global economy had faced considerable uncertainty during the period amid prolonged geopolitical conflicts, strategic competition, protectionism and extreme climate change. International organizations forecast global growth in 2026 to be significantly lower than in 2025.
Domestically, the Government has directed ministries, agencies, and localities to implement comprehensive measures in an effort to achieve double-digit economic growth.
Thanks to the effective mobilization of resources, Vietnam’s socio-economic performance in the third quarter and the first nine months of 2026 recorded positive and comprehensive results across most sectors.
The economy grew an estimated 9.95 percent year on year in the third quarter, accelerating from 8.15 percent in the first quarter and 8.81 percent in the second quarter.
For the first nine months as a whole, economic growth was estimated at 9.01 percent. The agriculture, forestry and fisheries sector grew by more than 4 percent, contributing over 5 percent of the economy’s total gross value added. Industry and construction expanded by more than 11 percent, accounting for nearly 50 percent, while services grew by nearly 8.7 percent, contributing more than 45 percent.
Regarding inflation, the Statistics Office reported that the consumer price index (CPI) in the third quarter increased 4.8 percent from the second quarter. On average, CPI in the first nine months rose 4.52 percent year on year, while core inflation increased 4.26 percent.
In trade, the total value of goods exports and imports reached more than US$888 billion in the first nine months, up more than 30 percent year on year. Exports were valued at more than US$434 billion, while imports stood at nearly US$454 billion.
Vietnam recorded a trade deficit of more than US$19.4 billion in goods during the period. The United States remained Vietnam’s largest export market, with exports reaching US$140 billion, while China was the country’s largest import market, with imports exceeding US$187 billion.
The number of newly established and resumed businesses exceeded the number of businesses exiting the market. In the first nine months, nearly 224,000 businesses were newly established or resumed operations, down more than 3 percent from the same period in 2025. On average, nearly 25,000 businesses entered the market each month.
Meanwhile, 172,000 businesses exited the market, down nearly 2 percent year on year, averaging more than 19,000 businesses leaving the market each month.
Registered foreign investment in Vietnam also recorded strong growth during the first nine months. Total newly registered and adjusted capital, together with capital contributions and share purchases by foreign investors, exceeded US$50 billion, up more than 76 percent year on year.
Disbursed foreign direct investment (FDI) was estimated at more than US$21 billion, up 12 percent year on year. This marked the highest nine-month disbursement of FDI recorded in the past five years.
