Export is a bright spot of the economy (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – The Vietnamese economy could grow byabout 6-6.3 percent in 2021, said chief economist Pham The Anh from the VietnamInstitute for Economic and Policy Research (VEPR) during a workshop recentlyheld to announce the Vietnam Quarterly Macro-Economic Report.
The VEPR’s report said the global economy has shown signs ofrecovery thanks to the availability of COVID-19 vaccines, but instabilityremains while growth is uneven among nations and economies.
In the first quarter, Vietnam’s economic growth hit 4.48percent thanks to the Government’s drastic actions to control the pandemic fromthe early stage, along with the signing of the European Union – Vietnam FreeTrade Agreement and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement.
Illustrative image (Photo: Internet) However, Anh also warned that Vietnam is facing challengesin an uncertain economic environment. The resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemicin many countries resulting in lockdown measures is prolonging the disruptionof supply chains this year, weakening the resilience of enterprises.Geo-political conflicts among major powers could also expose Vietnam tounexpected risks.
Other risks are related to fiscal imbalance, slow and lowinvestment, vulnerable financial-banking system, and growth’s heavy reliance onforeign-invested sector.
The VEPR suggested that the top priority should be given tosocial welfare policies, targeting the right persons.
The report also proposed that corporate support policies shouldbe continued with more substantial measures and greater focus.
According to Anh, Vietnam should gradually build fiscalcushion to prevent shocks like COVID-19 or its unexpected developments incoming years./.
VNA
