Hanoi (VNA) – The number of newly-establishedbusinesses in the first quarter of this year reached 28,451 with the total registeredcapital of 375.5 trillion VND (16.14 billion USD), up 6.2 percent and 34.8 percentyear-on-year, respectively.

According to the General Statistics Office (GSO), theaverage capital for each new firm was 13.2 billion VND.

In March alone, 12,472 new companies were set up, with a combinedregistered capital of 128 trillion VND, a surge of 111 percent in quantity and33 percent in capital compared to the previous month. Each company registered anaverage of 10.3 billion VND in capital.

Together with the 722 trillion VND of additional capitalinjected into companies already in operation, total capital poured into theeconomy in the first quarter of this year was 1,098 trillion VND, reported theGSO.

GSO Director Nguyen Bich Lam said that the impressive growthof business numbers in the first quarter show the efficiency of supportactivities for companies.

Businesses’ confidence also rose as 54.6 percent of those inthe processing-manufacturing industry expected better operations in the secondquarter, said Lam.

The total number of labourers employed by new firms was317,000, up 40 percent year-on-year.

During the period, the majority of new companies operated inthe areas of retail, wholesale, automobile and motorbike repair, construction,and manufacturing-processing.

However, a number of sectors saw drops in the number of new businesses,including accommodation and restaurant services (7.7 percent),financial-banking and insurance (14.2 percent), and mining (8.6 percent).

The Central Highlands region recorded the highest rise inbusiness numbers at 15 percent, followed by the Red River Delta at 14.6percent, the North central coast at 8.7 percent, the Southeast at 3.2 percent,and the Mekong River Delta at 3 percent.

On the contrary, the northern midland and mountainous regionsuffered a fall of 6.3 percent in the number of new firms.

The GSO reported that in the first quarter, 15,050 companiesresumed operations, a surge of 78 percent over the same period last year,raising the total number of operating firms to more than 43,000.

The GSO said that in the first quarter, 14,761 businessestemporary halted their operations, up 20.8 percent year-on-year, while 15,331firms registered to dissolve, and 4,116 others completed dissolving procedures.

Nguyen Minh Thao, head of the Department of BusinessEnvironment and Competitiveness at the Central Institute for EconomicManagement, said that authorised agencies should work harder to speed upadministrative reform to better serve businesses, thus encouraging startups andcontributing to improving the scale and speed of economic growth. –VNA