What does the government think about the current state of employment and economic growth as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the stimulus package?
These issues are interrelated. At the end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009, the issue of job creation became critical. The government then introduced stimulus packages to support businesses in easing the financial burden to maintain jobs for their workers and also for those who have been laid off in urban areas. If Vietnam fails to maintain its economic growth rate at five percent, there will be a serious shortage of jobs.
What is your opinion of the second package?
There has been a heated debate on this among National Assembly deputies and economists. The final decision will be made by the government in its upcoming monthly meeting. I think such a stimulus package would do good to businesses as at this moment the interest rates of bank loans remain rather high. The government is now focused on boosting economic growth to avoid the risk of a second downturn predicted by global economists as W-shaped, not V-shaped downturn once Vietnam’s export markets have not yet fully recovered.
Would the absence of a second package have an impact on Vietnam’s economic recovery?
Inflation and the stability of the macro-economy are still matters of common concern, especially when there are signs of foreign investors returning to Vietnam. Therefore, macro-economic management must be done carefully to strike a balance between the amount of money in circulation and the volume of goods sold, to pre-empt inflation.
What if there’s no more financial support to keep the economy purring along?
As I said, many enterprises will find themselves in a more difficult situation unless a new package is put in place. The reason is the national economy is just looking up, not yet back on track as it used to be. So it is better to go ahead with the second stimulus package while gradually reducing interest rates to give fresh impetus to sustainable economic growth in the coming period.