Workers at Tiên Hưng Garment Joint Stock Company in Hưng Yên Province. — VNA/VNS Photo Phạm Kiên

Nguyễn Bich Lâm, former director general of the General Statistics of Việt Nam, talks to Việt Nam News Agency on what Vietnamese enterprises need to do to maintain their business production during the COVID-19 pandemic.

What are the impacts of the current COVID-19 on the international economy?

The COVID-19 has caused heavy negative impacts on the international economy and Vietnamese enterprises.

The global supply chain has been disrupted and many people have lost their jobs. The pandemic has weakened the purchasing power of people all over the world, particularly in the fields of tourism and services.

More seriously, the pandemic has caused a negative impact on global economic growth as well as international trade and investment.

It has become a hurdle in the economic, trade and investment co-operation among trade partners in the world when their governments and enterprises have decided to temporarily stop their economic activities in areas/regions which have been hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

For example, the Japanese Government has reserved US$2 billion to support Japanese enterprises which are operating in China to return to Japan. It has also been suggested that US enterprises will leave China to create more jobs for the Americans.

It is projected that in a near future the world economic growth rate and trade will seriously be impacted.

What will be the impact on Việt Nam?

Before the breakout, Vietnamese enterprises were exposed to certain weaknesses. The country has many enterprises, but most of them are small and medium enterprises and the structure between different economic entities is quite irrational.

It is reported that only 44.1 per cent of the enterprises are operating successfully while up to 48.4 per cent of enterprises are operating at a loss. Meanwhile, the pre-tax profit from the business sector saw an increase of just 2.1 per cent.

By mid-September 2020, it was reported that up to 83.7 per cent of enterprises were negatively impacted by COVID-19.

However, it is reported in the context of COVID-19, enterprises operating in the fields of insurance, health care, post office gained certain benefits from the pandemics.

Do you have any suggestions or measures to help to enterprises recover when the pandemic is successfully controlled?

For the time being, we have to use the State budget to supply or to give preferential loans to enterprises for them to continue their operations. We should simplify the administrative procedures to enable the enterprises to apply for loans from the State budget or from credit funds.

In the meantime, the Government should also give more support to domestic investment while attracting more direct foreign investment – of course with proper screening.

I hope, the Party, the National Assembly and the Government will soon come up with good and workable strategies to develop the country’s socio economy in the context of the changing of the world economy and the international politics. — VNS