Vietnam targets 7% GDP growth this year, investment minister says

Nguyen Chi Dung’s latest mark beats previous official range of 6-6.5%

Vietnam is aiming for economic growth of 7% this year, the country’s planning and investment minister said on Monday, higher than the previous official target of 6% to 6.5%.

To achieve this, year-on-year economic growth in the third quarter needs to be 9% and in the fourth quarter 6.3%, minister Nguyen Chi Dung also said during a government meeting.

Dung said Vietnam’s budget was in surplus, giving scope for fiscal policy to be used to support businesses and residents.

« Credit institutions will need to further cut their lending interest rates to reduce input cost pressure for businesses and for the economy, » he said.

Vietnam, a regional manufacturing hub, started lifting its coronavirus curbs late last year, allowing factories to resume full operations.

The economy is recovering after growing only 2.58% last year, the slowest pace in decades.

The Southeast Asian country reported GDP growth of 7.72% in the second quarter, backed by strong export growth, but warned of upward inflation pressure for the rest of the year.

Reuters – July 4, 2022