International financiers upbeat about Vietnam’s economic outlook for 2024
VOV.VN - A number of international financiers have expressed their optimism about Vietnam’s economic growth in 2024 which is likely to be higher than last year’s figure, reported by Tuoi Tre (Young Age) newspaper.
International optimism about Vietnamese economic outlook
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently forecast that Vietnam would be the 20th largest economy in the world with a growth rate of 5.8% this year. However, the financier anticipated that the country would secure a growth rate of 6.5% in the medium term if it can seize upon opportunities from digitalisation and green transformation.
Another global financial institution, the World Bank, projected that the country’s economy would expand by 5.5% throughout the year and 6% next year, thereby continuing to be among the global economies with the highest growth rate.
The country’s exports are anticipated to grow by 3.5% compared to 2023, while domestic consumption and private investment are also on the rise. In addition, inflation is forecast to increase slightly to 3.5% in 2024.
Furthermore, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) projected that the Vietnamese economy is likely to grow by 6% in 2024 and 6.2% ahead in 2025. However, it warned that weak global demand, delayed normalisation of interest rates in the United States and other economies, along with continued geopolitical tensions could potentially hinder the full recovery of the Vietnamese economy which is mainly driven by exports.
Elsewhere, Fitch Ratings, Standard Chartered, and United Overseas Bank all forecast that the Vietnamese economy would develop by between 6% and 6.3% in the year ahead, reaching even higher figures in 2025.
Highly valuing the country’s growth prospects, the international financiers noted that the country has secured the fastest growth in ASEAN in terms of the digital economy, and finished third in Southeast Asia in terms of investment in start-ups.
Domestically, the Government has maintained macroeconomic stability, kept inflation in check with suitable balances, and guaranteed both food security and energy security.
More room to raise economic growth
According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the country still has plenty of room to improve its growth rate by promoting public investment, consumption, and tourism; increasing the contribution of digitalisation and high technology to boost growth; stepping up green transition; and taking advantage of the shifting of foreign investment flows.
Many international groups also recommended that Vietnam quickly seize upon opportunities from shifting investment flows amid fierce competition in the region. Accordingly, the country should choose stages with competitive advantages, such as AI application, AI chip design, and AI cloud computing, all of which are associated with the engagement of a number of leading multinational companies in order to develop a high-tech ecosystem.
International experts highly appreciated the Government’s policy making and implementation, as well as its performance, but emphasised the need to focus on speeding up progress and improving the overall effectiveness of policy implementation.
Furthermore, the Government should continue to support the economy through a flexible fiscal policy in a bid to consolidate recovery, whilst paying close attention to accelerating the pace of implementation of infrastructure investment projects using public financial sources.
