Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính calls for efforts to boost growth drivers in the meeting on June 1. — VNA/VNS Photo Dương Văn Giang

HÀ NỘI – Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính stressed on Saturday the need to focus on revitalising traditional growth drivers while vigorously promoting new ones

He made the request while chairing a Government meeting that reviewed the socio-economic situation in May and the first five months of 2024 and discussed the focal tasks for June and beyond.

The PM perceived that the socio-economic situation in May continued the positive trend and reaped better results than the previous month. The five-month situation was also better than the same period last year in most areas.

Growth was boosted in all three sectors of industry, agriculture, and services. The macro-economy stayed stable, inflation under control, and major balances ensured.

During January - May, the consumer price index (CPI) increased 4.03 per cent year on year. The State budget revenue was equivalent to 52.8 per cent of this year’s target and rose 14.8 per cent from a year earlier. Foreign trade value grew 16.6 per cent, with US$8.01 billion in trade surplus. Total foreign direct investment (FDI) topped $11 billion, up 2 per cent.

Meanwhile, tourism continued recovering strongly as seen in the number of international arrivals surging 64.9 per cent, statistics show.

Many international organisations have released optimistic predictions of Việt Nam’s economic growth in 2024, he noted.

Besides, cultural and social aspects, institutional building, the fight against corruption and negative phenomena, national defence, security, and external relations have been fostered. The quality of people’s lives has been improved. Việt Nam’s prestige and stature in the world have also increased further, according to PM Chính.

However, he noted, there remain shortcomings, problems, difficulties, and challenges such as the high pressure on inflation and exchange rates, hard credit access in the real estate market, slow policy response in some places, along with complicated food poisoning, fire, and crime situation.

Mentioning some main tasks for the coming time, the Government leader demanded continuing the proactive, flexible, timely, and effective monetary policy that is coordinated harmoniously and strongly with a reasonably expanded and focus-driven fiscal policy.

Ministries, sectors, and localities must work harder to facilitate enterprises and people’s access to credit to achieve credit growth of about 5 per cent for the first half and 15 per cent for the entire year. Lending interest rates should be cut by another 1 - 2 per cent. In particular, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) and the Ministry of Construction have to immediately take concrete measures to step up the disbursement of the credit package worth VNĐ120 trillion ($4.7 billion) for social housing development.

Strong actions are required to stabilise the gold market, raise the State budget revenue and reduce spending, foster digital transformation, and continue to exempt or cut taxes, fees and charges to tackle production and business obstacles. More measures are also needed to keep markets and prices stable, especially for petrol, oil, essential goods, housing, and food, according to the PM.

Asking for traditional growth drivers to be renewed and new ones strongly promoted, he said it is necessary to accelerate public investment projects, fuel private investment, enhance public - private partnerships, selectively attract FDI, consolidate traditional markets and explore new markets, strongly stimulate domestic consumption, and facilitate e-commerce and cashless payment.

Concrete and effective mechanisms and policies are also needed to robustly boost new growth drivers, develop regional and urban economy, and bolster green transition, circular, sharing and knowledge-based economy, along with such new fields as semiconductor and artificial intelligence.

Besides, it is important to seize farm produce export opportunities, augment efforts to have the “yellow card” warning over illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing lifted soon, ensure sufficient water for agriculture, power generation and people’s life, and better prevent forest fires, PM Chính went on.

Regarding services, he asked for strongly developing potential sectors, increasing tourism attraction, and tightening management of tourism quality and prices as the summer travel season is coming.

At the meeting, the Cabinet chief also requested ministries, sectors, agencies, and localities ensure social security and people’s life, prepare for salary reforms, strengthen national defence and security safeguarding, further combat crimes and corruption, and quickly and effectively implement the international treaties and agreements to which Việt Nam is a party. — VNS