Businesses speed up from the start of the year
The notion that "the first lunar month is for leisure" no longer holds true. Right after the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday, a surge of orders has prompted businesses to accelerate production to meet delivery deadlines for their partners.
More than 90% of the workforce at Kyoyo Vietnam Metal Casting Joint Stock Company has returned to work. After receiving Tet greetings and lucky money from the leadership, all employees quickly got back to their tasks with a sense of urgency.
More orders
According to Dang Tran Thuy, General Director of Kyoyo Vietnam Metal Casting JSC, this year’s orders have increased significantly. Previously, customers only placed orders for a few hundred products, but now some orders exceed 1,000 or even thousands of products. Therefore, in 2025, the company aims for over 30% growth compared to last year. "We will enhance product quality and improve technology to boost productivity. In terms of human resources, we will strengthen collaboration with recruitment organisations to ensure a stable workforce for the company".
Similarly, over 12,000 employees in Garment 10 Corporation have resumed work to fulfill export orders for the US and European markets. Phung Thi Hanh, a worker in the shirt hem sewing force, shared that despite being the beginning of the year, the workload is already substantial due to numerous pending orders. "Every second and every minute, I must stay focused to avoid mistakes and ensure we meet our deadlines", she said.
Than Duc Viet, General Director of Garment 10 Corporation, shared that the company has already secured orders until the end of Q2 and is currently negotiating additional contracts. With these positive signs, May 10 continues to target over 10% growth, focusing on sustainable and eco-friendly production, reaffirming its commitment to providing environmentally friendly products for consumers. "We will continue to innovate technology, enhance productivity, reduce costs, and ensure stable incomes for employees while promoting social welfare", said Viet.
Meanwhile, Nguyen Thanh Tuan, Director of VASA Footwear Company, noted that despite market demand recovering, the company only achieved 60% of its 2024 targets. Export sales met just 40% of expectations due to challenges in meeting sustainability standards required by high-quality markets. Even with efforts to boost domestic sales, they could not fully compensate for the export shortfall. However, at the start of 2025, the company has seen positive signals in orders, thanks to its expansion into less demanding markets such as Asia and Africa to increase revenue. Moving forward, VASA plans to gradually adopt advanced technologies in production to meet the strict standards of markets like the US, Europe, and Japan.
With a renewed spirit, the domestic business community is confident in achieving its production and business targets for the new year. This optimism is reflected in the quarterly survey on production and business trends conducted by the General Statistics Office, which includes 6,327 enterprises in the processing and manufacturing industries.
Specifically, in the first quarter of the year, 79.8% of businesses anticipate an increase or stability in new orders compared to the fourth quarter of the last year (32.6% expect an increase, 47.2% expect stability), while 20.2% predict a decline in new orders. For new export orders, 80% of businesses forecast an increase or stability compared to the previous quarter (29.0% expect an increase, 51.0% expect stability), while 20% predict a decline. Regarding labour demand, 88.7% of businesses plan to increase or maintain their workforce (14.6% expect an increase, 74.1% expect stability), while 11.3% foresee a reduction in employment.
Better support for production activities
However, the General Statistics Office also highlighted the three biggest challenges facing businesses in the processing and manufacturing industries, which primarily revolve around finding and expanding market demand for their products. Specifically, 53% of businesses struggle due to low domestic market demand.; 51.2% of businesses face increasing competition from domestic products; and 30.3% of businesses encounter difficulties because demand in international markets has not yet fully recovered.
According to S&P Global statistics, Vietnam’s Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) stood at 48.9 points in January, continuing its decline from 49.8 points in December and marking the second consecutive month below the 50-point threshold. Notably, new orders decreased for the first time in four months, as surveyed businesses reported a decline in customer demand. In response to lower workloads, businesses cut jobs and reduced inventory levels for both purchased goods and finished products.
According to a representative from Kyoyo Vietnam Metal Casting JSC, US President Donald Trump's plan to impose tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico, and China has led American businesses to increase orders from Vietnam. However, there is also the possibility that the US could raise tariffs on Vietnamese exports. Therefore, the company is actively working on expanding its customer base in potential markets such as the UK, Germany, and FDI enterprises in Vietnam, particularly from Japan. Additionally, the company hopes that relevant authorities will organise more trade fairs to facilitate product promotion, business connections, and technology exchange with foreign enterprises.
According to Directive No. 03/CT-TTg issued on February 4, urging the implementation of key tasks after the Tet (Lunar New Year) 2025, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh directed the Ministry of Industry and Trade to take the lead, in coordination with relevant agencies and localities, to boost production and business activities immediately after the holiday, especially in key industrial sectors. The directive also emphasised the need to urgently resolve difficulties and obstacles in industrial production projects to bring them into operation as soon as possible. Authorities must closely monitor market conditions, supply, and demand for essential goods, ensuring effective production regulation and smooth distribution to drive economic growth from the early months of the year. Additionally, the Ministry is tasked with finalising proposals for tax, fee, and levy reductions and submit them to the appropriate authorities within February. Additionally, the Ministry must complete the dossier for the draft National Assembly resolution on agricultural land use tax exemption, ensuring it is submitted to the Government in the first quarter for further consideration by the National Assembly. The Prime Minister emphasised that government agencies must immediately focus on handling pending tasks, especially unfinished work from the previous year and those delayed due to the Tet holiday, to prevent disruptions to production, business activities, and socio-economic development.
To further support production and business operations, the General Statistics Office suggests several key measures including reducing input cost pressures of businesses and ensuring access to capital for them; stabilising raw material and energy prices, allowing businesses to plan and operate with greater confidence; streamlining administrative procedures, including shortening processing times and cutting unnecessary steps; and implementing specific policies on land leasing for production and business activities, mitigating the financial burden caused by rising land rental fees in 2024.
