Speaking at the Press Conference to Announce Socio-Economic Statistics for the second quarter and first 6 months of 2026 on July 3, 2026, Ms. Nguyen Thi Huong - Director of the Statistics Department (Ministry of Finance) said that although the economic context is still unstable, the socio-economic situation in the second quarter and first 6 months of 2026 of our country achieved many positive results in most industries and fields.
According to Ms. Huong, the gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter of 2026 achieved a fairly good growth rate, with an estimated growth rate of 8.39% compared to the same period last year. GDP in the first 6 months of 2026 increased by 8.18% compared to the same period last year (the same period in 2025 increased by 7.63%).
In the second quarter of 2026, industrial production continued to maintain a positive growth trend, the index of industrial production (IIP) is estimated to increase by 11.2% compared to the same period last year. In general, in the first 6 months of 2026, IIP is estimated to increase by 10.8% compared to the same period last year, which is the highest increase since 2019, of which the processing and manufacturing industry increased by 11.4%.
Providing information on the business situation, a representative of the Statistics Office said that the whole country has nearly 111.7 thousand newly registered businesses with a total registered capital of more than 1,352.6 trillion VND and a total number of registered workers of nearly 515.3 thousand workers, an increase of 22.5% in the number of businesses, an increase of 64.8% in registered capital and a decrease of 12.8% in the number of workers compared to the same period last year.
In addition, the whole country has more than 58,100 businesses returning to operation (down 5.5% compared to the same period in 2025), raising the total number of newly established and returning businesses in the first 6 months of 2026 to more than 169,800 businesses, up 11.2% compared to the same period in 2025. On average, 28.3 thousand newly established and returning businesses per month.
In general, in the first 6 months of 2026, the number of businesses temporarily suspending business for a definite term is 85.9 thousand businesses, an increase of 6.3% compared to the same period last year; nearly 41.2 thousand businesses stopped operating waiting for dissolution procedures, an increase of 21%; nearly 24 thousand businesses completed dissolution procedures, an increase of 94.7%. On average, 25.2 thousand businesses withdraw from the market every month.
Commercial and service activities in the first 6 months of the year continued to maintain a fairly high growth rate with total retail sales of goods and consumer service revenue increasing by 12.9% compared to the same period last year.
Tourism activities continue to maintain positive growth thanks to favorable visa policies, promotion and advertising work being promoted, and product diversification, expanding the international tourist market. As a result, the number of international visitors to Vietnam continued to increase compared to the same period last year. In general, in the first 6 months of 2026, international visitors to Vietnam reached 12.3 million, an increase of 14.9% compared to the same period last year.
Implemented investment capital of the whole society in the first 6 months of 2026 at current prices is estimated at 1,807.8 trillion VND, an increase of 12.9% compared to the same period last year, higher than the increase of 10.5% in the same period in the first 6 months of 2025, this increase reflects the continued expansion of investment activities, contributing to promoting production, business and economic growth in the first half of 2026.
Total registered foreign investment capital into Vietnam as of June 30, 2026 includes: Newly registered capital, adjusted registered capital and the value of capital contribution and share purchase of foreign investors reached 34.65 billion USD, an increase of 61% compared to the same period last year. Foreign direct investment capital implemented in Vietnam in the first 6 months of 2026 is estimated at 13.03 billion USD, an increase of 11.2% compared to the same period last year, reaching the highest level in the first 6 months of the year from 2022 to present.
In general, in the first 6 months of 2026, the total import and export turnover of goods reached 549.69 billion USD, an increase of 27.1% compared to the same period last year, of which exports increased by 21%; imports increased by 33.4%. The higher import growth rate than exports shows that the input demand of the economy continues to expand, and at the same time reflects the strong recovery of production activities, especially in the foreign-invested sector. The trade balance of goods imports is 16.65 billion USD.
