In the festive atmosphere of the early days of the Lunar New Year 2026, on the morning of February 23, 2026 (the 7th day of the Lunar New Year), the Ministry of Industry and Trade held its traditional Spring gathering.

On behalf of the Party Committee’s Standing Board and the Ministry’s leadership, Party Central Committee member, Party Secretary, and Acting Minister Le Manh Hung extended New Year greetings to all officials, civil servants, public employees, and workers across the sector, while outlining key priority tasks for 2026.

Also attending the event were Deputy Ministers Truong Thanh Hoai, Phan Thi Thang, and Nguyen Hoang Long, along with leaders, officials, and staff from units under the Ministry.

Reporting on the sector’s performance during the Lunar New Year and the implementation of post-holiday priorities, Deputy Minister Phan Thi Thang noted the Ministry had promptly issued directives to implement Secretariat Directive No. 55 and Prime Ministerial Directive No. 36 on organizing the 2026 Lunar New Year celebrations.

The Ministry instructed and guided localities, state-owned groups, corporations, business associations, and related units to develop plans for the holiday period, focusing on ensuring adequate supplies of essential goods without shortages or price surges; maintaining stable fuel and electricity supplies for production and consumption, strengthening market inspections to combat smuggling, ensuring food safety and preventing fire and explosion risks.

Despite the nine-day Lunar New Year holiday, the industry made concerted efforts to maintain supply-demand balance for essential goods, electricity, petroleum, and consumer products, stabilize prices, and enhance market supervision, enabling people nationwide to celebrate a safe and joyful holiday.

Reviewing the results of 2025 and the recent holiday period, Acting Minister Le Manh Hung commended officials, civil servants, public employees, and workers across the sector for completing a substantial workload and achieving encouraging outcomes, contributing to economic stability and growth in 2025 and during the Lunar New Year.

He emphasized that 2026 marks the first year of implementing the Resolution of the 14th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam and the beginning of the 2026 - 2030 socio-economic development plan. It is also the first year of implementing two major national objectives toward 2030, the 100th anniversary of the Party’s founding and the goal of becoming a developing country with upper-middle-income status and a modern industrial base.

Within this context, the industry and trade sector has been assigned a substantial workload and plays a crucial role in realizing the country’s strategic goals.

The Acting Minister called on all units, based on their assigned functions and responsibilities, to immediately resume professional work from the first days of the year, implement tasks decisively and synchronously, and strictly carry out established objectives and plans.

Highlighting priority tasks for 2026, he stressed the need for a strong renewal of forecasting work, urging units to shift from a management mindset to a governance approach, thereby enabling optimal planning and proactive responses in specific situations.

He also called for a comprehensive review of the Ministry’s state management activities, focusing on three fundamental pillars: law and policy development; optimization of administrative management to support socio-economic development and supervision and resolution of emerging issues.

The sector must continue reviewing and amending legal provisions that have revealed shortcomings in implementation, while proactively researching, developing, and advising on appropriate mechanisms and policies aligned with the Party’s and State’s economic governance orientations in the field of industry and trade. This is considered a decisive factor in effectively achieving the sector’s development objectives in the coming period.

In parallel, the Ministry will prioritize implementation of strategic master plans, particularly major projects and key works in energy and industry; continue expanding and diversifying markets; review and reassess free trade agreements (FTAs); and prepare response scenarios to external trade-remedy measures.

Beyond professional tasks, the Acting Minister underscored the importance of implementing the project on building and developing public service culture within the sector, aiming to clearly define its role and standing in the national economy and foster pride among officials and employees. The workforce must exemplify professional expertise, professionalism, and international integration capacity. At the same time, planning and reorganization of workspace will be carried out to ensure the best possible working conditions.

Although many challenges are expected ahead, Acting Minister Le Manh Hung expressed confidence that, with its proud tradition and the competence, capability, and determination of its workforce, the industry and trade sector will overcome difficulties and successfully fulfill the objectives entrusted by the Party and the State.