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Vietnam Economy

Economy - overview: Vietnam is a poor, densely populated country
that has had to recover from the ravages of war, the loss of
financial support from the old Soviet Bloc, and the rigidities of a
centrally planned economy. Substantial progress was achieved from
1986 to 1996 in moving forward from an extremely low starting point
- growth averaged around 9% per year from 1993 to 1997. The 1997
Asian financial crisis highlighted the problems existing in the
Vietnamese economy but, rather than prompting reform, reaffirmed the
government's belief that shifting to a market oriented economy leads
to disaster. GDP growth of 8.5% in 1997 fell to 6% in 1998 and 5% in
1999. Growth continued at the moderately strong level of 5.5%, a
level that should be matched in 2001. These numbers mask some major
difficulties in economic performance. Many domestic industries,
including coal, cement, steel, and paper, have reported large
stockpiles of inventory and tough competition from more efficient
foreign producers; this problem apparently eased in 2000. Foreign
direct investment fell dramatically, from $8.3 billion in 1996 to
about $1.6 billion in 1999. Meanwhile, Vietnamese authorities have
moved slowly in implementing the structural reforms needed to
revitalize the economy and produce more competitive, export-driven
industries.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $154.4 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 5.5% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,950 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 25%

industry: 35%

services: 40% (1999 est.)

Population below poverty line: 37% (1998 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%:
3.5%

highest 10%: 29% (1993)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): -0.6% (2000 est.)

Labor force: 38.2 million (1998 est.)

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 67%, industry and services
33% (1997 est.)

Unemployment rate: 25% (1995 est.)

Budget: revenues: $5.3 billion

expenditures: $5.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.8
billion (1999 est.)

Industries: food processing, garments, shoes, machine building,
mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, coal, steel,
paper

Industrial production growth rate: 10.7% (2000 est.)

Electricity - production: 22.985 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity