Vietnam’s industrial production declined sharply in February as the Lunar New Year holiday reduced the number of working days, though output remained higher than a year earlier and growth for the year to date remained strong, according to the latest release from the National Statistics Office.
The industrial production index (IIP) in February fell 18.4 percent from January but rose 1.0 percent compared with the same month in 2025, according to official estimates. For the first two months of 2026, the IIP is projected to increase 10.4 percent year-on-year.
Manufacturing output in February rose 2.3 percent compared with the same period last year, while mining declined 5.3 percent. Electricity production and distribution fell 4.5 percent, and water supply, waste management and wastewater treatment dropped 5.6 percent.
For January–February, manufacturing expanded 11.5 percent, contributing 8.9 percentage points to overall industrial growth. Electricity production and distribution rose 6.3 percent, mining increased 5.4 percent, and water supply and waste management grew 2.1 percent.
Several industrial segments recorded strong growth during the period. Production of other non-metallic mineral products rose 33.1 percent, metal production increased 27.9 percent, beverage production grew 20.9 percent, paper and paper products climbed 20.4 percent, and motor vehicle manufacturing rose 20.3 percent.
Chemical and chemical product manufacturing increased 20.1 percent, while wood processing and products from wood, bamboo and rattan rose 13.4 percent. Food processing expanded 13.2 percent, garment production increased 11.6 percent, textile manufacturing rose 10.5 percent, and furniture production grew 10.2 percent.
Rubber and plastic products increased 9.3 percent, and the production of electronic products, computers and optical products rose 8.0 percent. By contrast, hard coal and lignite mining declined 3.4 percent and the manufacture of other transport equipment fell 2.7 percent.
Output growth was recorded in all 34 localities during the first two months of the year. Strong increases were generally linked to growth in manufacturing and electricity production, while slower-growing areas saw weaker performance in manufacturing, mining and power generation.
Among individual industrial products, cement production rose 30.5 percent compared with a year earlier. Chemical paints increased 27.5 percent, steel bars and angles rose 25.7 percent, processed seafood increased 24.8 percent, and automobile production climbed 24.0 percent.
Motorcycle production rose 22.5 percent, beer output increased 18.1 percent, and phone component manufacturing grew 15.4 percent. However, urea fertiliser output declined 16.7 percent, clean coal fell 6.1 percent, mobile phone production dropped 4.4 percent, natural fibre textiles declined 4.2 percent, NPK fertiliser fell 3.9 percent, and alumina output decreased 0.5 percent.
Employment in industrial enterprises increased modestly. As of February 1, the number of workers rose 0.2 percent compared with the previous month and increased 4.0 percent year-on-year.
Employment in foreign-invested enterprises increased 5.9 percent compared with the same period last year, while the workforce in state-owned enterprises declined 3.0 percent and employment in non-state firms fell 0.2 percent. Manufacturing employment rose 4.1 percent year-on-year, while mining employment increased 1.0 percent.