Vietnam ’s growth is forecast to slow to 5.7 percent this yearbefore picking up to 6.2 percent in 2013, providing the current policiesare adhered to.
The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Country Director for Vietnam,Tomoyuki Kimura, made the remark at a press conference in Hanoi on April11 to launch the ADB’s annual flagship publication, the AsianDevelopment Outlook for 2012 (ADO 2012).
Kimura saidthat inflation could drop to just under double digits this year, butthen is expected to rise again to 11.5 percent in 2013. This is intandem with economic growth and expectations of higher global foodprices, as well as hikes in domestic electricity and fuel costs.
The ADB’s Country Economist, Dominic Mellor, said that foreignreserves are still relatively low compared to imports, making theeconomy vulnerable to external shocks.
He warnedthat lowering the interest rates too quickly could put the Vietnamesedong under renewed pressure. This will undermine efforts to stabilisethe macroeconomic situation, erode the confidence of investors andconsumers and affect foreign reserves.
Financialanalysts praised the Government’s efforts to make structural reformsthis year and stressed the need to increase the transparency of thefinancial performances by State-owned enterprises and restructure thefinancial sector. This is especially true for the banking sector, whichneeds to develop diverse and efficient financial systems to meet thisyear’s growth target of 7-8 percent.
According tothe ADO 2012, the region’s growth in GDP and inflation are expected toreach 6.9 percent and 4.6 percent in 2012, and 7.3 percent and 4.4percent in 2013, respectively. However, rapid growth in Asia iswidening the gap between rich and poor, which threatens to undermineregional growth and stability.
To addressinequality, policymakers in Asia need to spend more on education andhealth, introduce better targeted social welfare schemes, reduce oreliminate general price subsidies, broaden the tax base, create morejobs and help countries that are lagging behind, it said.-VNA
The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Country Director for Vietnam,Tomoyuki Kimura, made the remark at a press conference in Hanoi on April11 to launch the ADB’s annual flagship publication, the AsianDevelopment Outlook for 2012 (ADO 2012).
Kimura saidthat inflation could drop to just under double digits this year, butthen is expected to rise again to 11.5 percent in 2013. This is intandem with economic growth and expectations of higher global foodprices, as well as hikes in domestic electricity and fuel costs.
The ADB’s Country Economist, Dominic Mellor, said that foreignreserves are still relatively low compared to imports, making theeconomy vulnerable to external shocks.
He warnedthat lowering the interest rates too quickly could put the Vietnamesedong under renewed pressure. This will undermine efforts to stabilisethe macroeconomic situation, erode the confidence of investors andconsumers and affect foreign reserves.
Financialanalysts praised the Government’s efforts to make structural reformsthis year and stressed the need to increase the transparency of thefinancial performances by State-owned enterprises and restructure thefinancial sector. This is especially true for the banking sector, whichneeds to develop diverse and efficient financial systems to meet thisyear’s growth target of 7-8 percent.
According tothe ADO 2012, the region’s growth in GDP and inflation are expected toreach 6.9 percent and 4.6 percent in 2012, and 7.3 percent and 4.4percent in 2013, respectively. However, rapid growth in Asia iswidening the gap between rich and poor, which threatens to undermineregional growth and stability.
To addressinequality, policymakers in Asia need to spend more on education andhealth, introduce better targeted social welfare schemes, reduce oreliminate general price subsidies, broaden the tax base, create morejobs and help countries that are lagging behind, it said.-VNA
