A production line at the Dinh Vu Polyester Fibre Plant in the northern city of Hai Phong.(Photo: VNA)Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Vietnam’s economywill grow at 6.6 percent this year, slightly down from last year’s 7.1 percent,HSBC has forecast in a report it released this week.
It said average inflation would be 3.1 percent,meeting the central bank’s target of ‘below 4 percent’.
The GDP growth in the first quarter is estimatedat 6.8 percent, down from 7.3 percent a year ago. Manufacturing industrycontributed the most to the growth while the services sector continued tooutperform. The Export growth in the period was the lowest in the last nineyears.
HSBC said the economy still shows strong signsof growth. In March, the Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose, manufacturingand new export orders increased steadily.
The industry remains optimistic based on thelikelihood of improved demand and investment.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) increasedsteadily since the beginning of the year, and is expected to sustain domesticgrowth despite external difficulties.
Meanwhile, low inflation will enable the centralbank to further focus on growth.
The Government is expected to continue withreform of health-related services.
Manufacturing is expected to remain strong thisyear after growing at 13.1 percent in the first quarter and contributing 2.5percentage points to Q1 growth. This was its highest contribution lastyear.
Domestic demand remained strong as growthcontinued in the wholesale, retail and transportation sectors.
The main negative in the first quarter was theslowdown in the growth of the financial sector as credit growth slowed sincethe second half of 2018 to control inflation.-VNS/VNA
VNA
