Vietnam’s retail sector is forecast to maintain growth for the remainder of the year, as the majority of retail businesses have plans in place to boost sales.

Head of the Domestic Market Department under the Industry and Trade Ministry, Tran Duy Dong, said this year’s primary objective is to promote the domestic market’s robust development, and increase the total retail sales of consumer goods and services to between 8% and 9%.

The Vietnamese economy is forecast to maintain growth for the rest of 2023, yet competition is expected to be more intense as current domestic and international competitors expand and new retailers enter the market, The Star reports.

According to a recent survey by PwC Vietnam, consumers in the country are planning to be more cautious in their spending habits between now and the end of the year.

Indeed, around 62% of consumers polled said they are planning to cut non-essential spending, a total of 54% said they will spend less on luxury goods, followed by travel at 42% and consumer electronics at 38%, because of soaring prices.

To offset this, Vietnam’s retailers have bene implementing new ways to maintain or boost sales numbers, such as reducing supply chain costs.

According to supermarket representatives in Hanoi, consumers aren’t shopping as frequently as before, and are more focused now on essential items, discounts and promotions.

Retail market expert, Vu Vinh Phu said the prices of certain essential goods had risen in recent months, and if the current price increases could not be controlled or are exacerbated, domestic purchasing power would be further impacted.

Although Vietnam has abundant domestically produced goods, particularly agricultural and food products for domestic consumption and export, increasing prices will lead to difficulties for the domestic market, Phu added.