Vietnam’s industrial output posts strongest 8-month growth in 7 years as FDI surges 55%

Vietnam’s economy showed broad-based improvement in the eight-month period with industrial production, trade, investment, domestic consumption and international tourism all recording strong growth from a year earlier.

Industrial output rises across all 34 localities

The country’s industrial production index (IIP) increased 1.5 percent month on month and 14.4 percent year on year in August.

The Statistics Office said between 2019 and 2025, the eight-month growth rate had never exceeded 9.5 percent. The figure for January–August 2025 was 8.5 percent.

Industrial output increased year on year in all 34 cities and provinces.

The number of workers employed by industrial enterprises as of August 1 increased 1 percent from a month earlier and 3.8 percent from the same period last year.

Exports, foreign investment gain momentum

Industrial production accelerated as Vietnam’s total goods trade reached $770.1 billion in January–August, up 28.7 percent year on year and the highest level ever recorded for the eight-month period.

Exports totaled $374.8 billion, up 22.4 percent.

Foreign-invested companies, including crude oil, accounted for $300.4 billion, or 80.1 percent, while domestic companies contributed $74.4 billion.

Manufactured and processed industrial products accounted for 90.2 percent of total exports, worth $338 billion.

The U.S. remained Vietnam’s largest export market, with shipments totaling $122 billion.

Meanwhile, Vietnamese companies also increased their overseas investment. In January–August, 113 new projects received investment certificates, with total capital contributed by Vietnamese investors reaching $1.21 billion, 2.8 times higher than a year earlier.

Including additional capital for existing projects, Vietnam’s total overseas investment reached $2.62 billion, up 4.7 times year on year.

State budget-funded investment in January–August was estimated at VND546.8 trillion ($20.7 billion), equivalent to 50.5 percent of the annual target and up 18.5 percent year on year.

In the same period last year, disbursement stood at 45.3 percent of the annual target.

Domestic consumption, tourism remain strong

Retail sales of goods and consumer services revenue totaled VND5,235.5 trillion ($198.3 billion) in January–August, up 13.3 percent year on year. Adjusted for price changes, the growth rate was 7.6 percent, slightly higher than 7.5 percent in the same period last year.

Freight transport also expanded, with 2.285 billion metric tons of goods transported during the eight-month period, up 16.7 percent year on year.

Vietnam welcomed 15.9 million international visitors in January–August, up 14.4 percent year on year and the highest figure for the eight-month period on record.

August alone saw nearly two million foreign arrivals, up 19.7 percent from July.

The National Statistics Office said Vietnam remained an attractive destination for international tourists thanks to its favorable visa policies, stronger tourism promotion, diverse tourism products, and the country’s natural landscapes, culture, cuisine and relatively affordable travel costs.