VOV.VN - Vietnam’s GDP is expected to expand by about 4.8% in 2021, or 2% lower than the projection made by the World Bank Group in December 2020, the WB says in its latest edition Taking Stock released on August 24.

Pension and social insurance allowances and monthly subsidy will increase by 11% from January 1, 2022 under a proposal the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) has submitted to the government.

Adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic growth of Vietnam’s key cities, such as Hanoi and HCMC, has been slower, the exodus of migrant workers leaving HCMC may make the path of recovery planned by enterprises more bumpy.

Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung has said low disbursement of public investment capital amid the COVID-19 pandemic could waste resources and result in the loss of opportunities to create a driving force for economic development.

Economic experts have emphasised the need to have a new impetus to improve economic growth in the remaining months of 2021 towards realising the growth target for the year set by the Government and the National Assembly.

Fundamental factors that help the Vietnamese economy respond to current challenges, especially the impacts of COVID-19, were discussed in an article by senior journalist Cameron Cooper published on the intheblack.com business news site of Australia.

Despite struggling to cope with a COVID-19 resurgence, Ho Chi Minh City managed to achieve positive economic growth in the first seven months of the year, according to the city Statistics Office.

Public investment will focus on important and key industries and sectors of the economy, of which economic sectors account for more than 71%.

Ngo Dang Khoa, country director of foreign exchange and capital markets at HSBC Vietnam, has suggested three challenges that the Vietnamese economy would face in the second half of this year.

Though exports remain strong, several sectors face difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic and require support from the Government if they are to sustain the growth, experts said.