Cabinet convenes meeting to review COVID-19 fight, socio-economic performance in H1

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh speaks at the Cabinet meeting, Ha Noi, July 1, 2021. Photo: VGP

Under the chair of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, the one-day meeting will also discuss major orientations, tasks and solutions for the second half this year.

In his opening remarks, PM Pham said that the Government has consistently pursued the ‘dual goal’ of COVID-19 containment and economic recovery.

The Vietnamese economy grew 5.64 percent over the period despite the fourth COVID-19 wave which broke out on April 27, according to the General Statistics Office.

Total foreign investment capital inflow in the first half reached nearly US$15.27 billion, down 2.6 percent against the same period last year while the disbursed volume was estimated at US$9.24 billion, up 6.8 percent on-year.

The country’s export value rose by 28.4 percent to US$157.63 billion, in which foreign-invested sector accounted for 74.1 percent while import turnover was estimated at US$159.1 billion, up 36.1 percent from the same period last year.

Commenting on the January-June socio-economic performance, Tran Du Lich - a Ho Chi Minh City-based economist - said the positive signals were attributed to the Government's consistent pursuance of the "dual goal".

Pham stressed that the Government has yet changed the preset targets, thus he urged inferior levels to be active, flexible, and creative in realizing the dual goal depending on the pandemic situation in each locality.

According to PM Pham, Bac Ninh and Bac Giang, which were the epicenters of the fourth wave of COVID-19 resurgence, are now focusing on boosting business production. Meanwhile, Ho Chi Minh City and other southern localities are requested to give priority to disease prevention due to a surge of infections.

Nguyen Chi Dung, Minister of Planning and Investment said the economy faced mountain of difficulties in the first six months due to emergence of new COVID-19 outbreaks, rising prices of input materials, and transportation risks.

The ministry has envisaged two development scenarios for the second half materialize the National Assembly’s preset GDP growth rate in 2021 as followed:

In the first scenario, to achieve this year's GDP growth goal of 6 percent, the economy needs to expand 6.2 percent and 6.5 percent in the third and the fourth quarters.

In the second scenario, to achieve the GDP growth rate of 6.5% in 2021, the economy needs to grow 7 percent  and 7.5 percent in the third and the last quarters./.

By Khanh Phuong