It was not surprising when the National Statistics Office announced that GDP in 2025 was estimated to grow by 8.02%. This figure had already been projected and widely anticipated by the administration. Notably, with core inflation for the year contained at 3.21%, the economy successfully achieved its twin targets in what was by no means an easy year. On January 5, 2026, the first working day of the New Year, the National Statistics Office released socio-economic data for the fourth quarter of 2025 and the full year. The figures showed that in the final quarter of 2025, the economy surged with growth of 8.46%, bringing overall GDP growth for the year to 8.02%. “This is a strong growth rate, second only to that of 2022 during the 2011–2025 period,” noted Nguyen Thi Huong, director of the statistics office. Unlike 2022, when the economy rebounded strongly in the aftermath of Covid-19, growth in 2025 unfolded against a backdrop of sluggish global expansion, persistent inflationary pressures, and prolonged geopolitical tensions, compounded by visible domestic climate shocks. Widespread flooding from heavy rains and storms, flash floods, and landslides across many localities, together with challenges in production and business, made 2025 far from a […]