PM Phuc says Vietnam’s 2020 economic growth could slow to 4-5%

Luu Van Dat Friday | 05/22/2020 10:15

A man walks past a Covid-19 fight poster in the capital city of Hanoi, Vietnam, on April 1, 2020. Photo: VNA

Vietnam is striving for a GDP growth of 4-5% this year from previously targeted 6.8% due to coronavirus which has been hurting the global economy, PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc told foreign media.

Vietnam, with an export-dependent economy, sees growth slower though the country has successfully contained the virus outbreak. Its major trade partners, which are still fighting the virus, have limited trade activities.

The global supply chains disrupted by the public health crisis will take toll on Vietnam’s exports and affect the country’s gross domestic product.

The country is pursuing the most important goal which is to maintain economic stability and a low inflation rate, PM Phuc said while promising more measures to help foreign investors to expand business in Vietnam.

“We consider investors’ success as our success,” Phuc told an interview on Bloomberg TV. “We will continue to be a safe place for international investors and tourists”.

Vietnam has been prepared to benefit from firms looking to shift production out of China as a way to save its high GDP growth target.

“Thanks to our success in fighting the virus, many international investors are interested in Vietnam now,” Phuc told foreign journalists.

In 2019, when the pandemic was not reported, Vietnam’s economy expanded 7%, among the highest in the world.

Addressing legislators, PM Phuc said GDP could slow to 4.4 - 5.2% if Vietnam’s main trade and investment partners control the virus in the third quarter. And if Vietnam’s main trade and investment partners control the virus in the fourth quarter, Vietnam’s 2020 GDP growth could be 3.6 – 4.4%

In the worst situation, if the pandemic lasts until 2021, Vietnam could see its economic growth at only 3%, said National Assembly Vice Chairman Phung Quoc Hien.

The Vietnamese government, which has reported just 324 infections and no deaths as of Friday morning, said there were 670,000 newly unemployed people in four months. In April, there were 270,000 lost their jobs. The pandemic affected over 5 million people.

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