August retail sales plunge as COVID-19 cases on rise
Total retail sales of goods and services in August slid 10.5% month-on-month and 33.7% year-on-year as a result of restrictions imposed to contain the ongoing COVID-19 resurgence, data from the General Statistics Office (GSO) shows.
The spike in COVID-19 cases has forced many parts of the country to go into social distancing state under the Prime Minister’s Directive No.16, bringing trade, travel and tourism to a grinding halt, according to the GSO.
This month, the transport sector carried more than 60.7 million passengers and nearly 91.1 million tonnes of goods, down 75.9% and 39.3%, respectively, compared to the same period last year.
International arrivals were estimated at around 9,300, up 24.4% month-on-month but 43% year-on-year.
In the first eight months of 2021, total revenue from retail trade and services dropped 4.7% year-on-year to exceed VND3.04 quadrillion (over US$133.43 billion). The transport industry served over 1.92 billion passengers and handled close to 1.07 billion tonnes of goods during the period, down 18.8% and 3.5%, respectively.
Foreign arrivals shrank 97.2% to just 105,000 over the last eight months.