Country Economic Review: Viet Nam

Abstract

The year 1999 witnessed a modest pickup in the performance of the economy of Vietnam. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rose from 4.4 percent in 1998 to 4.7 percent in 1999. With domestic demand remaining sluggish, the major contribution to GDP growth came from export expansion. Investment as a share of GDP fell by almost 4 percentage points. Excepting for Government investment, the shares In GDP of all other subcategories of investment, i.e., foreign direct investment (FDI), State-owned enterprise (SOE) investment, and domestic private investment, shrank. The rise in government investment spending reflected the fiscal stimulus package that the Government introduced in mid-1999.