Vietnam's economy expands at faster pace in third quarter

[HANOI] Vietnam's economic growth accelerated in the third quarter.

Highlights of GDP report Gross domestic product rose 7.46 per cent in the third quarter from a year earlier, compared with a revised 6.28 per cent in the previous three months, the General Statistics Office said in Hanoi on Friday

The economy expanded 6.41 per cent in the nine months through September.

The strong growth eases pressure on Vietnam's government and the central bank to add more stimulus to meet a target of 6.7 per cent economic expansion this year.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc last month asked the central bank to take steps to bring down banks' lending rates to help businesses.

The central bank is among a handful of Asian monetary regulators to ease monetary policy this year, unexpectedly cutting its benchmark interest rate for the first time in three years in July.

BLOOMBERG