Bắc Giang leads economic growth in Q1

VIETNAM, June 24 - BẮC GIANG —  The estimated Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) of the northern province of Bắc Giang reached 14.18 per cent in the first quarter of this year, continuing to lead the country, according to Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Mai Sơn.

All major economic sectors of the province saw strong growth, with agriculture, forestry and fisheries increasing by 2.14 per cent, industry and construction rising by 18 per cent, services expanding by 6.32 per cent and product taxes growing by 4.48 per cent.

In the first quarter of 2024, Bắc Giang was given approval from the Prime Minister to establish two new industrial parks, bringing the total number in the province to ten, spanning a total planned area of 2,252.3 hectares.

To March 15 the province has attracted around US$624.26 million in registered investment and has brought in nine new domestic projects, with a total registered capital of VNĐ7,668.4 billion, a 25.8-fold increase compared to the same period last year.

Three hundred and ten new companies were established in Bắc Giang during Q1 2024, representing an 18 per cent increase, with a total registered capital of VNĐ2,598 billion.

Contributing decisively and lending most weight to the economic figures, the Industrial Production Index (IIP) of the province in March increased by 20.6 per cent compared to the previous month and increased by 16.7 per cent compared to March 2023. In the first three months of this year, this index increased by 23.89 per cent compared to the same period.

The reason the IIP of Bắc Giang has increased quite so significantly is that several large enterprises in the province have expanded production levels and consolidated operations since the third quarter of 2023.

The electronics manufacturing sector has the highest share of the overall industrial pie, with the production index estimated to have increased by 41.13 per cent in Q1 2024 compared to the same period last year, thanks to the strong growth of large companies such as Luxshare ICT, Luxshare Vân Trung, Fukang and Hana Micron.

Key products that saw strong increases include smartwatches, which are estimated to have reached over 3,300 thousand units, doubling compared to the same period and headphones, estimated to have reached over 18,500 thousand units, up 52.5 per cent compared to the same period.

According to the Provincial People's Committee, the economic growth of the province in Q1 exceeded projections and indicates a strong local economic recovery.

In the early months of this year, cooperation between Bắc Giang and foreign provinces and localities has been strengthened and expanded, with many agreements signed.

The province's agricultural production is on schedule and experiencing comprehensive growth. Additionally, the service sector continue to recover and the value of imports and exports maintains a fairly good growth rate.

Vice Chairman of Bắc Giang Provincial People's Committee Mai Sơn said the locality would continue to focus on effectively implementing the key solutions in the second quarter of 2024.

Bắc Giang is preparing the necessary conditions, especially in terms of infrastructure, workers and land availability, to proactively capture the shifting flow of foreign investment, particularly high-quality capital with advanced technology, by ensuring that the province meets the specified requirements for projects financed by non-state budgetary sources.

The province is comprehensively reviewing and monitoring the business operations of local enterprises, proactively supporting and addressing their proposals and recommendations, especially regarding issues such as capital, sales markets, labour and raw material costs, in order to help stabilise production, accelerate the recovery of supply chains and enable the development of new production capacity.

The province is also working to enhance the effectiveness of its trade promotion activities, strengthening the connection and sales of lychee and other key agricultural products from the province.

Specifically, the province organised a 'National Branding Week' to commemorate Vietnam Branding Day on April 20 to promote and boost the consumption of its locally-grown products.

Bắc Giang is also intensifying the application of agricultural production processes aligned with standards such as VietGAP, GlobalGAP and high-quality organic certification, to improve the quality and value of its agricultural products.

Bắc Giang is making great efforts to accelerate the implementation progress of public investment projects across the province, particularly key ones in 2024, such as constructing the Hà Bắc 2 road and bridge to connect the branch 2 of Ring Road IV with the Yên Phong Industrial Park and National Highway 18 in Bắc Ninh province, upgrading and expanding the road connecting Provincial Road 293 to National Highway 17, building a bridge and connecting road from Mỹ An Port to National Highway 31 - National Highway 1 and the branch line from Suối Nứa Lake to Khuôn Thần area in Lục Nam and Lục Ngạn Districts.

The province is also accelerating investment and infrastructure construction for industrial parks and industrial clusters, to help attract further investment.

The province is completing land clearance and compensation for the remaining areas of the expanded Yên Lư and Hòa Phú industrial parks, as well as new industrial parks like the expanded Phúc Sơn and Việt Hàn industrial parks. — VNS