Vietnam's economy expands 5.98% in 2014

[HANOI] Vietnam's economy grew 5.98 per cent in 2014, the highest for three years, despite a festering banking crisis and damaging anti-China riots, authorities said Wednesday.

The figure - higher than last year's increase of 5.42 per cent and 5.25 per cent in 2012 - marks "a positive sign," according to a statement on the website of the General Statistics Office.

The communist nation is still struggling with a number of economic troubles including bad debts in the banking system, weak economic competitiveness and inefficient production.

In June, the central bank devalued the Vietnamese dong by one per cent to help boost exports following deadly riots in May after China moved an oil rig into waters claimed by Vietnam.

To ease foreign investor fears, Hanoi swiftly offered compensation to affected businesses, among them Taiwanese and South Korean factories set ablaze, by cutting tariffs and fast-tracking insurance settlements.

Vietnamese inflation this year slowed to 4.09 per cent, from around 6.04 per cent in 2013, the GSO added.

The government is targeting economic growth of 6.2 per cent in 2015.

AFP