Vietnam's fundamentals point to robust medium-term outlook

SINGAPORE and Vietnam commemorated their close ties last week at the 20th anniversary of the Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park (VSIP). Two memoranda of understanding were inked to potentially expand the size of the current VSIP by 20 per cent.

During Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang's visit to Singapore in August, he also spoke about the opportunities for Singaporean and international businesses in Vietnam and the country's continued efforts to attract investors.

Over the past few years, Vietnam has witnessed rapid economic growth on the back of strong manufacturing, growing exports and inflow of foreign direct investment. While Vietnam's economy slowed in the first two quarters of 2016 owing to the worst drought it has seen in three decades and the uncertain global economic environment, the country's economic fundamentals are in place and point to a robust medium- term economic outlook.