Banks have cut lending interest rates, now at the lowest levels in many years, to help people and businesses hit hard by Covid-19.

After many months of staying at low levels, deposit interest rates at banks have increased since late May.

Vietnam’s consumer price index (CPI) in May was up 0.16 percent agaisnt April and 2.9 percent from last year, reported the General Statistics Office (GSO) on May 29.

Due to the complicated Covid-19 situation, MOF has written to the governments of provinces and cities asking them to enhance price stabilization and management following Deputy PM Le Minh Khai’s directive on price governance in 2021.

Vietnam’s economy is witnessing an impressive rebound and is expected to be among the best recovering economies in the world despite Covid-19 resurgence in neighboring countries.

Vietnam aims to become the second largest economy in Southeast Asia by 2030 thanks to its sound economic performance, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has said.

Some commercial banks have raised deposit interest rates following an 8-year inflation rate high in February. Analysts believe a new interest rate floor will be set in the second quarter.

Amid difficulties, many Vietnamese businesses are still staying firm and seeking opportunities to rise up. The Vietnamese spirit has helped them survive and prosper, further developing the economy.

The US-China trade war, Brexit, the US withdrawal from TPP, Covid-19 and internal difficulties all have affected Vietnam’s economy in the last five years.

Director General of the General Statistics Office (GSO) Nguyen Thi Huong has stressed that 2020 is considered a year of success in inflation control.

The pandemic and uncertainties have put pressure on the global economy. However, Vietnam, though facing many risks, is expected to continue growing well.

As opposed to that of supply, the recovery of demand remains weaker, which means that the recovery of growth in the coming time will depend largely upon whether consumers can bolster their purchasing power

The COVID-19 pandemic will continue to weigh on socio-economic development and State budget in 2021 and the years that follow, Minister of Finance Dinh Tien Dung said.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment has proposed adding some indexes not yet stated in the statutory economic criteria, such as per capita gross domestic product (GDP), contribution of TFP to growth and labor productivity.

Salaries increased by 6.5% this year at multinational companies (MNCs) and 5.2% at Vietnamese companies, and are forecast to increase by 7 per cent and 7.7% next year, according to the Talentnet – Mercer Total Remuneration Survey.

If the Covid-19 pandemic will continue to be well put under control as it is now, Vietnam’s GDP growth in the fourth quarter is likely to be higher than the first three quarters.

Vietnam’s GDP grew by 2.12 percent in the first nine months of the year compared with the same period last year, the lowest growth rate since 2011, according to the General Statistics Offic.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) has been asked to meet the goal of 6-6.5% GDP growth in 2021.

Truong Van Phuoc, a respected economist, is optimistic about Vietnam’s growth, though some analysts warned about a negative growth rate after the new Covid-19 outbreak was discovered in Da Nang.

Under pressure from investors, annual business plans are rarely changed at large enterprises. But things may be different this year.