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/ March 1, 2021

Making greater efforts towards a year of economic growth

The highlight of 2020 was that Vietnam achieved and exceeded 10 out of the 12 main targets assigned by the National Assembly, up two targets compared to the estimate, including the targets on the growth rate of total export revenue and on the unemployment rate in urban areas. This is an encouraging economic result amid the “COVID-19 period” because the pandemic caused dramatic declines on consumption worldwide, pushing production and export activities to stagnation and raising unemployment rate. In addition, the implementation of four other goals has better performance than the estimates reported to the National Assembly, including the growth rate of gross domestic product (GDP), the average growth rate of consumer price index (CPI), trade surplus, and the percentage of population participating in health insurance. Basically, the growth quality of the economy has been improved with less dependence on natural resource exploitation, raw exports, and cheap labour while gradually shifting to rely on application of science, technology and innovation, and the processing and manufacturing industry. It can be said that Vietnam's economy had a year of brave growth in both quantity and quality, which were not only kept stable but also growing. This result has added a highlight to the economic picture of Vietnam in such a difficult year while reinforcing the confidence of the whole society in the Government's policy and governance in the context unpredictable developments of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, with GDP growth rate of 2.91% in 2020, Vietnam's economy had the lowest growth year in the past ten years and failed to meet the target set for the 2016 – 2020 period. This is a big challenge in the starting year of the implementation of the 5-year socio-economic development plan in the 2021 - 2025 period and the ten-year strategy in the 2021 – 2030 period. To continue with another year of brave growth, right from the beginning of 2021, the entire political …

/ December 30, 2020

Vietnam’s top 8 economic events in 2020

The Hanoitimes - As the world is struggling with unprecedented crisis from the Covid-19 pandemic, Vietnam has emerged as one of the most successful stories by putting the deathly virus under control and boosting strong economic growth. Hanoitimes selected Vietnam's top 8 economic events in 2020, the most successful year of Vietnam over the past five years. The country is among handful countries in the world delivering a positive growth amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. 1. Among world’s fastest growing economies Data: GSO. Chart: Ngoc Thuy. Vietnam’s GDP in 2020 grows at an impressive pace of 2.91%, the lowest in a decade but among the world’s highest and the only economy in the Southeast Asia with a positive economic growth. “As the Covid-19 situations remains complicated around the world, such a positive economic growth could be seen as a major achievement of Vietnam,” stated the General Statistics Office. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said the result showcased Vietnam’s success in pursuing the dual target of both containing the pandemic and boosting economic recovery. For next year, the Vietnamese government targets the GDP growth to rebound to 6.5% in 2021, 0.5 percentage points higher than the goal set by the National Assembly at 6%. Such forecast remains in line or even modest compared to forecast from international organizations such as the IMF (6.5%), World Bank (6.8%) S&P (10.9%), or HSBC (8.1%), which showcase a bright outlook for the Vietnamese economy following a difficult year. 2. A decade-high of disbursement of public investment Newly-built Ring Road No.3 (section Mai Dich – South Thang Long) was opened for traffic on October 11. Photo: Pham Hung. Seen as one of the key solutions to boost economic recovery after the pandemic, the Vietnamese government targets to realize the full amount of VND470.6 trillion (US$20.32 billion) to aid economic recovery. The progress for this year is …

/ February 25, 2021

Nikkei Asia: Vietnam will be Southeast Asian growth leader in 2021

As a leading financial newspaper run by Japanese media giants Nikkei Inc., Nikkei Asia have stated that, “Southeast Asia's growth leader in 2021 may well be Vietnam”, during a recent article detailing ASEAN's GDP forecasts for the year ahead. According to Nikkei, the country recorded economic growth of 2.9% last year due to its success in containing the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), in addition to the robust exports of electronics and other consumer products, with the nation reportedly targeting a growth rate of 6.5% this year. The Japanese media also quote a report produced by Gareth Leather, senior Asia economist at Capital Economics, who notes that Vietnamese exports should continue to be supported by tariffs imposed by the United States on Chinese goods. "To avoid US tariffs, importers have shifted demand from China to alternative suppliers. With US-China relations likely to remain strained over the years ahead, this trend is likely to continue,” Leather noted. Nikkei also stress that before the pandemic, Southeast Asia achieved collective annual growth of approximately 5% over the course of many years, therefore making it one of the world's best-performing regions in economic terms. According to media reports, the region has become an attractive investment destination, with a relatively young population that drives demand and provides plenty of manufacturing labour. Although these factors can be viewed as advantages that can boost economic growth, the region’s top priority in the short term is to stamp out COVID-19. VOV/Nikkei Asia …