VIETNAM ECONOMY GROWS 5.44%

The Vietnamese economy grew 5.64 percent in the first six months this year despite the fourth COVID-19 wave which broke out on April 27, according to the General Statistics Office.

In the second quarter starting from March, the economy expanded 6.61 percent, mainly buoyed by robust growth of the industry and construction sector (up 8.36 percent).

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 the foreign-invested sector accounted for 74.1 percent.

The U.S. was the biggest importer of Vietnamese goods with US$44.9 billion or a year-on-year increase of 42.6 percent, followed by China (US$24.4 billion, up 24 percent), the EU (US$19.3 billion, up 17.4 percent), and ASEAN (13.8 billion, up 26 percent).

Meanwhile, import turnover was estimated at US$159.1 billion, up 36.1 percent from the same period last year.

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