Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung concludes the Conference. Photo: chinhphu.vn

Addressing the conclusion at the Meeting, Prime Minister directed the ministries, central sectors and localities to review and consider amendments to Resolution of the People's Council on the tasks and measures of socio-economic and national defense - security development in 2012 to conform to the policies of the Government.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung: returned high inflation will impact on macro economic stability. Photo: chinhphu.vn

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung stressed, while maximizing the potential advantages for development, the priority is to control inflation (about 9%), stabilize macro economy, and attain growth rate of 6%, striving to reach 6.5%. We need to focus on directing the implementation of this goal, especially monetary policy, price control to prevent speculation, trade deficit management and exchange rates stabilization.  The year 2012 will see stubborn difficulties and challenges. The mission of inflation control and macroeconomic stabilization should be put under strict surveillance. If the Government direction is not decisive, strong, and consistent, high inflation can return, affecting macroeconomic stability, and leading to failure of fulfilling targets next year.

Related to the growth of domestic product (GDP), Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung evaluated that, in 2011 GDP growth expected to reach 5.9% partly due to the impact of the large public investment in 2010. In 2011, the industry sector grew significantly, the agriculture sector gained good outcomes with an increase of 2.2 million tons of rice, the service sector made progresses. However, it is assumed that the objective growth rate of 6% in 2012 (6.5% in favourable condition) is difficult to achieve. Therefore, we need to stimulate all the potentials for development and to minimize weaknesses, said the Prime Minister. Vietnam has many comparative advantages as a country of stable politics and socio-economy, of agricultural advantages (agricultural export value reached 26 billion USD in 2011), of potential domestic market (with population of nearly 90 million people), and having a large community of overseas Vietnamese people living in many countries around the world (approximately 4 million people). The big difficulty in 2012 is to reduce public investment while total value of public investment is estimated to reach 225,000 billion dong, state budget of 180,000 billion dong, and Government bond of 45,000 billion dong. To offset the reduction in public investment, we have to diversify sources of investment, especially the official development assistance (ODA) and foreign direct investment (FDI).

Regarding the world economic situation’s impacts on the Vietnam economy in 2012, Prime Minister Dung requests the ministries and sectors to monitor and update the situation and propose timely solutions. According to the international organizations, the growth rate of GDP of many countries in 2012 will be equal or lower than in 2011. As EU market accounts for 20% of Vietnam's export value, mainly export surplus, glooming EU economy in the next period will negatively affect export-import activities of Vietnam in 2012.

Concluding and guiding the Conference, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung puts strong emphasis on four major issues in 2012 as follows:

Firstly, Prime Minister emphasized the goal to curb inflation and stabilize the macro-economy. Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has shown solutions related to monetary policy (credit balance of 15-17%), fiscal policy (budget deficit of less than 4.8% of GDP), price control in the localities; trade deficit management (maintaining the level of 10% in 2011), namely to promote exports and restrict non-essential imports, use and improve the quality of made-in-Vietnam products, stabilize the exchange rate; comply with positive interest rates, and reduce interest rates consistent with lower inflation rate.

The second issue is to solve difficulties for production and business activities by lowering interest rates. Therefore, the potential localities and industries should closely follow the situation, tackle difficulties to maintain and boost production and business investment.

Third is to restructure the economy. Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung stressed that restructuring public investment was to rationally reduce the portion of public investment in total investment and improve the quality of public investment; solve the problem of high investment costs and low quality; focuse on works of importance, urgency and socio-economic meaning, including payment of completed and will-be-completed works in 2012. Plans for state enterprise and banking structuring will be soon proposed.

The last one is social security, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung suggested the ministries, sectors and localities to continue to ensure social security, welfare, poverty alleviation, new rural development, improve quality of human resources, speed up application of science and technology, development of public health and education, while solving the pressing issues related to public health, education, preventing corruption and ensuring national defense and security.

On the occasion of New Year, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung noted the ministries, sectors and localities to extremely focus on the price control; counterfeit and pirated goods combat, price speculation; to implement policies to stabilize prices; and to provide a happy Tet holiday for people, especially the policy beneficiaries and the poor. /.