Vietnam’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth is forecast to rise slightly to 5.6 percent in 2014 and 5.8 percent in 2015, according to a report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) released in Hanoi on April 1.

The Asian Development Outlook 2014 says inflation is expected to average 6.2 percent this year, assuming reasonably stable food production, moderate policy stimulation, and only slight depreciation of the Vietnamese dong.

Inflation will average 6.6 percent in 2015 as economic activity picks up, it says.

ADB Country Director for Vietnam Tomoyuki Kimura said e conomic growth should benefit from several measures taken by the Government to mitigate vulnerabilities in the banking sector, including the purchase of significant volumes of bad debts by the Vietnam Asset Management Company , and the adoption of new loan classification and provision standards that are closer to international norms.

The report also appreciates Vietnam ’s progress in reforming the finance-banking sector. For example, the State Bank of Vietnam has stepped up its supervision of bank lending, merged and restructured some of the weaker banks, and eased restrictions on foreign investment in domestic banks.-VNA