Gov’t prioritises inflation control, economic stabilisation
(VOV) - Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has asked ministries, agencies and localities to pursue the goal of controlling inflation and stabilising the macroeconomy, considering it a decisive factor in meeting other goals.
The primary task is to achieve sustainable growth and keep inflation in check, Dung told a regular monthly Cabinet meeting in Hanoi on May 26.
He asked the designated agencies to control market prices and increase preferential credits for prioritised areas such as agriculture, support industries, and economic sectors that have large workforce and have great influence on the country’s socio-economic development.
Cabinet members say the economy is on recovery track (Photo:VGP) |
He affirmed that agriculture is the mainstay of the economy and farmers need to easily access loans to develop production. He asked the agencies to effectively implement the policy of purchasing farmers’ rice for reserves and provide other necessary assistance to farmers to minimise economic losses.
The PM urged the Ministry of Finance to manage the State budget economically and effectively by practising thrift and preventing waste in public expenditure, meetings, and guest reception.
He assigned the central bank to swiftly settle bad debt to avoid far-reaching consequences, while keeping a close watch on the gold market to nip any unexpected fluctuations in a bud.
He reminded the designated agencies to speed up national key investment projects, especially for energy and transport routes.
A greater effort must be made to attract domestic and foreign investment, soon address hospital overload, reduce traffic congestion and prevent crime, said Dung.
He also asked the agencies to tightly control internet security and duly punish those who make use of the internet to fabricate national situation, causing harm to the nation and people.
At the meeting, Cabinet members proposed measures to ease difficulties for businesses to boost production and maintain growth.
To this end, they said it is imperative to revise policies, allocate capital for prioritised projects, seek outlets for products, reduce inventories, and increase the competitiveness of products.
In addition, they said it is necessary to improve the efficiency of trade and investment promotion, expand export markets, and speed up the restructuring of public investments, State-owned enterprises, and credit organisations.
It was reported that the consumer price index fell 0.06% in May compared to April, and May was the second month that has seen negative CPI in the past five months. Overall, the five-month CPI increased 2.35% compared to December 2012, a four-year record low.
Total five-year export earnings hit nearly US$50 billion, a year-on-year rise of 15%. Registered foreign direct investment (FDI) surged 8.9% to US$8.52 billion, while US$4.58 billion was disbursed, up 1.6%.