1. Despite bad implications of the global economic recession, the industry and trade sector actively handled a series of measures to stimulate economic growth. It therefore surmounted the most difficult period. The industrial production grew steadily month after month and rose 7.6 percent in 2009 over that in 2008. The retail sale and service revenue rose 18.6 percent while trade deficit was reduced significantly in value compared to in 2007 and 2008.
 2. Vietnam's first oil refinery, the Dung Quat Oil Refinery, became operational on February 22, 2009, providing the first oil products to the market. In 2009 the oil refinery produced around 700,000 tonnes of petrol products of various kinds to replace petrol imports. 3. The sixth session of the National Assembly Legislature XII adopted an orientation on the building of Vietnam's first two nuclear power plants with a capacity of 4,000MW each in Ninh Thuan province, thus creating a legal framework for developing a new energy source in Vietnam.
4. Under the Government's Project 30 on the simplification of administrative procedures in diverse field of state management from 2007-2010, on August 5, 2009 the Ministry of Industry and Trade promulgated a whole set of administrative procedures consisted of 207 items covering a wide variety of issues under its management.
 5. The home market trade promotion program and the 'Buy Vietnamese Goods' movement got underway smoothly under guidance from the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The move contributed a great deal to raising the retail sale and service revenue in 2009, maintaining a GDP growth, and reforming the way of doing business by many enterprises. 6. Investment activities were intensified. Many projects and programs were put into operation, including the DAP fertilizer production plant with a capacity of 330,000 tonnes/year meeting half of the local demand for the product, and the Quang Son cement project with an annual capacity of 1.5 million tonnes. In the later, local equipment represents 73 percent of total, a record level.
7. Positive results were recorded in Vietnam's efforts to step up international economic integration. Vietnam signed several bilateral and multilateral cooperative agreements such as the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand, the ASEAN-Korea and the ASEAN-India agreements. Several countries such as India, Australia, the Republic of Korea and New Zealand recognized Vietnam as having a market economy. The Vietnam-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement came into effect from October 1, 2009, thus facilitating bilateral trade, investment, and economic cooperation.
8. On September 12, 2009 the Ministry of Industry and Trade hosted a ceremony to honor the overseas Vietnamese business community, the first of its kind, in Berlin (Germany). Accordingly, the ministry gave awards to 42 typical business people in Europe. Later, on the occasion of the first overseas Vietnamese conference 15 exemplary businesses in Europe, the US, and Australia were also conferred the award. The move was to recognize significant contributions by overseas Vietnamese to homeland development under the spirit of the Politburo's Resolution 36 pertaining to overseas Vietnamese community.
9. For the first time since its establishment, the Ministry of Industry and Trade joined hands with the National Committee for International Economic Integration to host a national meeting on international economic integration.
 10. In the 58th anniversary of the Vietnam industry and trade sector’s traditional day (May 14), the Ministry of Industry and Trade inaugurated a historical relic in ATK safety zone in Dong Don town, Tan Trao, Tuyen Quang.
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