On the afternoon of August 21, the Legal Committee of the Hai Phong City People’s Council held a working session with the Department of Industry and Trade and the city’s Market Surveillance Sub-department on “Combating and preventing smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit goods in the city”. Pham Quoc Ka, Head of the Legal Committee of the City People’s Council, chaired the session. Vice Chairman of the City People’s Council Nguyen Khac Toan and representatives of the leadership of relevant departments, sectors and units attended.
According to the Department of Industry and Trade, efforts to combat and prevent smuggling, trade fraud and the trading of counterfeit goods have been implemented in a coordinated manner, contributing to a safe and responsible consumer environment. The department has regularly followed central and city directions and promptly issued instructions to strengthen market inspections and controls, preventing and promptly handling illegal importers and illicit transport; it has also intensified information and communications activities to improve the legal awareness of businesses, individuals and consumers regarding the prevention of smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit goods.
In 2024 and the first six months of 2025, the Department of Industry and Trade and the city’s Market Surveillance Sub-department inspected 1,460 cases, handled 1,096 cases and remitted more than VND 31 billion to the state budget. The Market Surveillance Sub-department inspected 1,424 cases and handled 1,024, remitting VND 29.5 billion; of this, administrative fines amounted to more than VND 11.4 billion and proceeds from the auction of confiscated goods exceeded VND 18.1 billion. The Department of Industry and Trade conducted 36 specialised inspections of enterprises, both planned and unscheduled, and issued 72 decisions imposing administrative penalties totalling VND 1.5 billion.
To effectively combat smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit goods in the coming period, the Department of Industry and Trade and the city’s Market Surveillance Sub-department recommended that the City People’s Council and City People’s Committee consider and allocate funding soon for specialised equipment and technical vehicles to inspect and control goods on the market; and invest in a local testing centre to assess the quality of goods, particularly food, cosmetics, medicines and functional foods. The Market Surveillance Sub-department recommended that the city promptly establish a testing centre to assess the quality of these goods.
Speaking at the session, Vice Chairman of the City People’s Council Nguyen Khac Toan stressed that combating and preventing smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit goods is a regular and continuous task that helps protect consumer rights and health and safeguard legitimate production. To carry out this work effectively, he asked the Legal Committee of the City People’s Council, after the thematic supervision, to prepare a comprehensive assessment report clearly stating proposals and recommendations for the city so that the task can be fulfilled by the relevant forces in both the immediate and long term. He asked the Department of Industry and Trade to promptly advise the City People’s Committee to consolidate the 389 Steering Committees at all levels, particularly at commune level. He also called for stronger coordination among sectors, localities and forces in providing and sharing information to improve the effectiveness of the fight against smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit goods.
In his concluding remarks, Pham Quoc Ka, Head of the Legal Committee of the City People’s Council, acknowledged and highly valued the results achieved by the Department of Industry and Trade and the city’s Market Surveillance Sub-department in combating and preventing smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit goods. He asked the units to clearly assess advantages and limitations, accurately forecast developments in the coming period and develop suitable plans; strengthen information and communications on legal regulations and the consequences of trading in or abetting smuggling, thereby building a healthy, transparent and civilised business environment. Regarding the proposals of the Department of Industry and Trade and the city’s Market Surveillance Sub-department, the supervisory delegation recorded and consolidated them for submission to the competent authorities for consideration and resolution in accordance with the law./.
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