VN rating outlook remains stable: S&P
VN rating outlook remains stable: S&P
Standard & Poor's (S&P) last week gave Viet Nam a crediting rating of BB-/B and a stable outlook, unchanged from the ratings announced in March 2015.
This was announced by the Ministry of Finance.
The stable outlook reflects Viet Nam's economic growth, while macroeconomic factors have been positively recognised with the improved outlook by the agency and the investors.
The factors that contributed to the positive S&P ratings include a relatively diverse and flexible economy and a per capita income reaching an estimated US$2,200 in 2016.Besides this, macroeconomic stability at a relatively high level has made a positive impact on exports and foreign direct investment.
In the past two years, appropriate socio-economic development policies have contributed to macroeconomic stability and effective inflation control.
Stable export growth, FDI, remittances that are increasing and the comparative advantage on labour costs compared with other countries in the region continue to be significant factors that help to improve the balance of payments and the economy's competitiveness.
S&P also noted, in the coming time, Viet Nam should pay attention to controlling its budget overspending and the increasing rate of public debt and bad debt in the banking sector.
These issues have also been recognised by the Vietnamese government and the National Assembly, with detailed plans on how to tackle them from now until 2020. The plans are aimed at controlling and bringing the budget over-expenditure to below 4 per cent of GDP and keeping the public debt growth rate within the ceiling limit of 65 per cent of GDP.
