The industrial production index of 20 southern provinces increased by 9.81 percent in the first seven months of this year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Key industrial products posted growth such as electronic products, apparel, footwear, frozen seafood, animal feed and rice. The region is home to 109 industrial parks, featuring nearly 1,406 projects with a total registered capital of 2.67 billion USD, generating more than 152,000 jobs. To propel growth, the regional industry and trade sector will switch from processing to manufacturing and integrate into the global value chain more deeply, develop key industries and use domestically-available materials.-VNA