Despite the market demand remaining weak, macroeconomic indicators have unexpectedly improved, prompting a reassessment of Vietnam’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast for 2024. However, analysts believe that the new GDP projections are hard to achieve, with downside risks still present. Improved macroeconomic fundamentals Many analysts have noted that a series of macroeconomic indicators have performed better than expected. A notable highlight is the 1.5-percentage-point surge in credit in the final week of the second quarter, which pushed credit growth in the first half of this year to 6%, significantly higher than in the same period last year. Earlier, Vietnamese bankers had forecasted that first-half credit growth would fall short of expectations due to declining demands of both businesses and consumers. At a press conference on July 16, Lim Dyi Chang, head of Corporate Banking at UOB Vietnam, suggested that the improved credit growth at the end of the second quarter might be attributed to seasonal factors. Credit expansions were still lower than expected at several banks. In fact, credit growth at UOB Vietnam between January and June was around 10%, still short of the targets and the demand for further expansion. Despite waning market demand, Vietnam’s GDP growth in […]