Vietnam's total import-export turnover in 2024 has reached a record high of about US$800 billion - a milestone in the country's economic achievements

Accelerating public investment disbursement

In 2024, Vietnam experienced many economic breakthroughs, starting with the radical leadership of the Party, State, and Government, particularly in addressing challenges related to public investment disbursement. Export growth also saw strong momentum, surpassing 2023 levels.

Second, investment capital flows, particularly foreign direct investment (FDI), showed promising signs of recovery. FDI disbursement reached over US$21 billion in the past 11 months.

The biggest nuisance remained investment capital disbursement. The disbursement rate of State-invested fund in the January-November period reached only 73.5% of the 2024 plan. A range of solutions are being executed by central and local agencies to accelerate towards the finish line. Achieving the yearly target is challenging, but localities, particularly areas like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, pledged to speed up the progress to fulfill the disbursement plan.

In Resolution 233/NQ-CP of its recent regular meeting, the Government requested continued priority to accelerate growth alongside maintaining macroeconomic stability, curbing inflation and ensuring major economic balances so as to achieve the best possible socioeconomic development plan of 2024 and create momentum for acceleration and breakthrough development in 2025 when its target growth is 8%.

Regarding the work to be implemented till early 2025, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said that we must tackle three major tasks simultaneously, including several challenging, complex, and sensitive ones: rapidly advancing toward the target; streamlining the organizational structure for greater effectiveness, and efficiency while restructuring and enhancing the quality of public employees; and reviewing the achievements of 2024 while developing an action plan for 2025.

He clearly reiterated the goal of completing all the 15 targets. He emphasized the need to sustain the acceleration and momentum to achieve an 8% growth rate in 2025, laying the foundation, strength, and positioning for double-digit growth during the 2026-2030 period.

He requested the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) to work with central agencies and localities to actively track global and local economic developments to have adaptive and accommodative monetary policies.

The SBV was told to direct credit institutions to proactively mobilize and balance capital sources to meet year-end credit demand of companies and consumers and channel credit into manufacturing and business sectors, prioritized industries and economic growth drivers, and strictly control credit for risk-on sectors.

8% GDP growth for 2025

Regarding the 2025 target, the National Assembly (NA) approved a resolution on the socioeconomic development plan, setting an economic growth target of 6.5-7%. Central agencies and localities aim for 7-7.5%, while the Prime Minister has set a more ambitious target of 8% growth for 2025.

With respect to the 8% GDP growth target, NA member Nguyen Thi Viet Nga (Hai Duong delegation) said that Vietnam has a lot of opportunities to achieve it. Exports are expected to extend growth, driven by free trade agreements (FTAs), especially new-generation ones. The government is also focusing on high-quality FDI flows into new industries (e.g. semiconductors and artificial intelligence). Digital transformation and artificial intelligence (AI) will be important growth drivers.

Regarding this growth target, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Quoc Phuong said that many new factors with fundamental changes, especially institutional changes, were adopted by the National Assembly at the 8th plenary session where many laws were passed.

“These laws will take effect from the beginning of 2025 and they are expected to stimulate growth by unleashing longstanding stagnant resources to spur growth in 2025,” he added.