The forecast for newly established enterprises this year indicates a 2% increase compared to 2023, reaching approximately 162,500, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

Production of home appliances at Sunhouse Vietnam in Ngoc Liep Industrial Park, Quoc Oai District, Hanoi. Photo: Thanh Hai/The Hanoi Times

In addition, around 68,000 businesses are expected to resume operations, a 16% increase. As a result, a total of 230,500 businesses will be contributing to the economic landscape in 2024.

This forecast is based on the registration status of businesses in 2023 and the prospects of the global and domestic economy in the coming period.

According to GSO, Vietnam's economic growth continues its positive recovery trend. The impact of supportive policies enacted last year is expected to become more pronounced. Drivers of investment (private investment, FDI, public investment, state-owned enterprises), consumption, tourism, and exports are projected to continue rising.

Additionally, issues such as business challenges, investment projects, the real estate market, and corporate bonds are expected to be resolved.

However, potential risks from the global economic environment persist, including military conflicts and inflation control in developed countries. The GSO noted that inflation shows signs of slowing down, but some major economies are forecast to maintain tight monetary policies.

As a result, large economies, major trading partners, and major investors in Vietnam are still recovering slowly, with unsustainable growth and weak consumer demand coupled with rising protectionist barriers.

The GSO said the world's unfavorable developments and regional factors would strongly weigh on Vietnam's production and business activities, industrial operations, import-export activities, and investment attraction.

Therefore, the number of businesses withdrawing from the market this year is predicted to increase compared to 2023, but at a considerably slower rate than during the pandemic. The Department of Business Registration estimates this number to be around 178,000, a 3.5% increase compared to last year. Among these, approximately 10% are expected to undergo dissolution procedures alongside temporarily ceasing operations.

The picture of business registration in 2023 continues to stand out as a bright spot in the overall landscape of Vietnam's economy for that year.

According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, a series of proactive measures have been taken by the government, ministries, and localities, such as reducing interest rates on loans, stabilizing the foreign exchange market, promoting the disbursement of public investment capital, implementing credit support packages for various sectors, exempting, reducing, extending taxes, fees, land use charges, and providing support to businesses. The extension of the e-visa validity for tourists and the resolution of difficulties in the corporate bond and real estate markets further contributed to this positive trend. Social welfare was also timely and practically addressed.

As a result, the positive trend was sustained and became more pronounced across many industries and sectors. This played a role in driving the number of newly registered businesses in 2023 to a record level of 159,294, a 7.2% increase compared to the same period in 2022. This milestone was 1.2 times higher than the 2017-2022 average and 4.6% higher than the 2023 full-year target.

Additionally, the number of businesses resuming operations in 2023 reached 58,412, contributing to a total of over 200,000 businesses (217,706 businesses) entering or reintegrating into the market. This reflects a 4.5% increase compared to the same period in 2022 and is 1.3 times the number of businesses that exited the market in the previous year.