Vietnam’s General Statistics Office estimated that gross domestic product (GDP) grew 9.95% year over year in the third quarter, in its 3 October 2026 report on the quarter and first nine months. Growth had been reported at 8.15% in the first quarter and 8.81% in the second. The estimate for January to September as a whole was 9.01%. These are national-accounts estimates available at the report date, not a final full-year result or a forecast for the fourth quarter.

In the third quarter, value added in agriculture, forestry and fishing rose 4.21%, contributing 5.14% of total value-added growth. Industry and construction expanded 12.50% and accounted for 51.57% of the contribution; services grew 9.54% and accounted for 43.29%. Contribution shares describe each sector’s part in overall value-added growth, while sector growth rates describe the change in that sector’s own value. They should not be read as the same type of measure.

The sector pattern was similar over nine months, though that period includes the first three quarters rather than a single quarter. Agriculture, forestry and fishing grew 4.02% and contributed 5.35% to total value-added growth. Industry and construction expanded 11.21%, accounting for 49.62% of the contribution, while services increased 8.69% and accounted for 45.03%. The composition of nine-month growth can differ from one quarter; replacing a quarterly figure with the nine-month total, or describing either as a full-year rate, would misstate the period.

Expenditure components pointed to different sources of demand. In the third quarter, final consumption rose 8.96% year over year and asset accumulation increased 21.39%. Exports of goods and services grew 23.27%, while imports increased 28.75%. Across the first nine months, final consumption rose 8.51%, asset accumulation 17.88%, exports 21.29% and imports 27.19%. With exports and imports both growing rapidly, the export rate alone does not show the contribution of net external demand; national-accounts volume and contribution calculations are also needed.

The office reported that agriculture, forestry and fishing represented 10.65% of the economy’s structure over nine months; industry and construction represented 38.35%; and services 42.97%. Taxes on products less subsidies on products accounted for 8.03%. These shares describe the nominal composition of value added and should not be confused with sector growth rates or real contributions to total output. In the same period a year earlier, the respective shares were 11.33%, 37.47%, 43.05% and 8.15%.

Within services, transport and storage grew 11.03% over nine months, wholesale and retail trade 9.85%, finance, banking and insurance 9.45%, and accommodation and food services 8.83%. These subgroup rates show different paces behind the 8.69% increase in services overall. The source also said trade, transport, tourism and services for daily life continued to expand, with domestic demand for goods, services and tourism remaining high. It did not link these observations to a specific price, employment or corporate-profit outcome.

Trade figures also showed expanding nominal flows. September merchandise exports were US$59.48 billion and imports US$58.21 billion. For January to September, exports reached US$434.30 billion and imports US$453.72 billion. Exports rose 24.5% year over year, while imports grew 36.7%. The arithmetic difference in nine-month merchandise trade was US$19.42 billion in favour of imports; it excludes trade in services, income flows and balance-of-payments financing. Dollar-denominated nominal trade values can also reflect prices and exchange rates.

Registered foreign investment as of 30 September totalled US$50.36 billion, combining new registrations, adjusted registered capital, and capital contributions or share purchases; the total was 76.4% higher year over year. The report’s measure is registered foreign investment, which should be distinguished from capital actually disbursed. Faster import growth than export growth, higher investment registrations and a strong GDP estimate are indicators of expanded activity, but do not by themselves establish sustainability, productivity or future growth.

The report covers the third quarter and first nine months of 2026. GDP and many activity indicators are estimates and can change through national-accounts revisions. Agriculture, industry, services, trade and registered investment are separate measurement areas and should not be combined as if they had the same scope. Sector contributions, growth rates and trade values are reported for the periods defined in the source. Later releases will show how estimates are updated and how the final quarter shapes the full-year result.