Singapore-based Straits Times ran an article on January 28 describing 2021 as a year of opportunity for Vietnam, while the Australian Financial Review (AFR) described the nation as being an essential cog in global supply chains.

According to the Straits Time, the ongoing 13th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam will decide on new leaders and chart the country’s future path, with a strong tailwind gained from its recent successes.

The article states that in in Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s opening speech to the congress on January 26, he hailed the country's economic development and containment of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic as twin major achievements. As such, the rising star of Southeast Asia has earned bragging rights, the news outlet noted.

This year can be viewed as the nation’s breakout moment following its competent handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and being one of the most successful economies in the region. It can therefore steal a march on others, as it ramps up production amid factories in the region remaining shut, while demand for tech, medical, and other products surge.

The new leaders the CPV selects and the new course of action will ultimately determine how well the national economy does and what role the country can carve for itself in the region, according to the Straits Times.

Furthermore, the publication believes that domestic challenges and external uncertainties could thwart Vietnamese ambition to become an upper-middle-income country by 2025 and an industrialised economy by 2030.

The article cites General Secretary Trong as admitting that shortcomings remain, including an economy that is not yet highly resilient. While the nation has privatised many state-owned firms, which make up nearly a third of economic output, they are typically low in efficiency and account for many bad loans. Indeed, the domestic economy remains dominated by low-end assembly work as opposed to high-end manufacturing, whilst the outdated higher-education system also cannot produce a sufficient amount of highly-skilled workers.

In its article on the Congress, the AFR outlines how domestic tourism and everyday life are largely back to normal.

It notes that Vietnamese leaders are focused on attracting additional foreign investment as the country has become an essential cog in global supply chains.

Low labour costs coupled with negligible barriers to entry initially attracted multinationals such as Unilever and Pepsico in the 1990s and early 2000s and they continue to remain factors in drawing firms to the nation. More recently, electronic giants such as Apple-supplier Foxconn have become keen on opening manufacturing establishments locally.

The article adds that the World Bank describes Vietnam as one of the most dynamic emerging countries in East Asia.
The AFR also quotes Francis Wong, senior adviser to the Australia-Vietnam Business Council, as saying that one of the keys to successful Vietnamese economic policies is stable and predictable succession in the Government driving the push towards an open economy. This has served to create confidence for investors both locally and internationally.