HANOI, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) -- Projections for Vietnam's economic growth are unchanged at 6 percent in 2024 and 6.2 percent in 2025, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said in its latest report, the Asian Development Outlook (ADO) September 2024, released on Wednesday.
Also compared with the ADO April 2024, Vietnam's inflation is expected to remain unchanged at 4 percent in both years due to persistent pressure from geopolitical tensions, including conflicts in the Middle East and that between Russia and Ukraine, and disruptions in global supply chains, the bank said in the ADO September 2024.
Vietnam's economy was robust in the first half of 2024, backed by improving industrial production and a strong recovery in trade, ADB country director for Vietnam Shantanu Chakraborty said at a press briefing on launching the bank's latest ADO.
Like Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines, Vietnam remains on track to meet its growth forecasts this year and next year, supported by robust domestic and external demand.
Domestic demand in Vietnam revived slowly in the second quarter of 2024 with continued fiscal support, including an extension of the two percentage points value-added tax cut.
Manufacturing in the country expanded in the first half of this year due to a resurgence in manufactured rubber, metal products, electrical equipment, electronics, and computers.
However, domestic demand remained sluggish, and subdued global economic prospects left some uncertainty, the ADO September 2024 stated, adding that significant downside risks, both domestic and external, highlight the need for accelerated institutional reforms to support the economy.
Vietnam has targeted economic growth of 6-6.5 percent this year. Its economy grew 6.93 percent in the second quarter of this year, and 5.66 percent in the first quarter, according to the country's General Statistics Office.
Asia and the Pacific is forecast to grow by 5 percent this year, compared with a projection of 4.9 percent in April, according to the ADO September 2024. The forecast for the region next year is maintained at 4.9 percent.
The improved economic outlook reflects stronger-than-expected expansions in East Asia, Caucasus and Central Asia, and the Pacific, the ADB said in its latest report.
According to the bank, rising global demand for semiconductors, driven in part by the artificial intelligence boom, is boosting exports, while easing global food prices and the lagged effects of monetary policy tightening have brought inflation down to near pre-pandemic levels. ■
