High political determination needed to meet growth target: PM
Addressing the conference between the Government’s Standing Board and ministries, sectors, economic groups and corporations, the PM noted that in order to realise the aforesaid target, the growth in the six remaining months of this year must be at a high level of 7.42 percent.
He stressed that this is an important political task of all sectors, especially agriculture, industry, construction, processing and manufacturing.
[National Assembly targets 6.7-percent GDP growth in 2017]
According to the Ministry of Planning and
Investment, the surging GDP in the second quarter raised the January-June
growth rate to 5.73 percent. The service sector made the biggest contribution
to the overall growth (2.59 percentage points), particularly in wholesale,
retail, accommodation, catering, finance, banking, insurance, and real estate.
The total volume of international tourists to
Vietnam in the period was 7.42 million, a year-on-year rise of 28.8 percent.
While the mining industry suffered from a sharp decline, the agriculture,
forestry and fishery sectors have recovered with a growth rate of 2.65 percent.
The average consumer price index (CPI) rose by 3.91 percent in the first seven
months, below the National Assembly’s set target of 4 percent.
To reach the goal of 6.7 percent, the GDP growth
must be at the minimum level of 7.23 percent in the third quarter and 7.57
percent in the fourth quarter, the ministry estimated.
PM Phuc recognised this as a heavy task given
unpredictable regional and global developments, plus the peak of the flood and
storm season in the country.
He gave approval of measures
proposed at the meeting to extricate difficulties for businesses and improve
the investment climate.
The PM asked all sectors to act more firmly to
reduce business expenses and support production in term of tax and fees, as
well as promote trade and innovation, and remove institutions that hinder the
country’s development.
He stressed ensuring macro-economic stability is
still the top priority of the Government and asked the Ministry of Planning and
Investment to coordinate with relevant ministries and economic sectors to
improve fiscal, trade and investment management tools, curb inflation, promote
growth, and keep a close watch on the domestic and international affairs in
order to make timely response to any arising problems.
Phuc also requested increasing individual
responsibilities in management.
The Government will hold meetings to address outstanding
difficulties for businesses and promote role of key economic regions, he said.
He suggested stimulating
domestic consumption, creating confidence in the market, and increasing
investment in business production, while striving to reach a credit growth of
21 percent and stepping up the reshuffle of State-owned enterprises, especially
the equitisation and divestment process in the remaining months of 2017.
The PM ordered quick allocation and disbursement
of funding for climate change programmes and improvement of State budget
collection and thrift practices in all sectors and enterprises.
To obtain the export target of over 205 billion
USD in 2017 and curb trade deficit, the PM advised to increase service exports,
especially in tourism, and take measures to reduce imports, improve the quality
of domestically-made products and prevent smuggling and trade frauds.-VNA