This figure remains unchanged from the growth forecast for 2024. However, it is higher than forecasts for other countries in the region, including China (4.5%), Indonesia (5.1%), Thailand (3%) and Malaysia (4.4%).
The IMF forecasts that Vietnam's consumer prices will rise by 3.5% in 2025, a decrease of 0.6% compared to the previous year. Regarding unemployment rates, the IMF predicts a slight decrease for Vietnam, from 2.1% in 2024 to 2% in 2025.
On a broader scale, global growth is projected to be 3.2% in 2025, while medium-term growth is expected to fade to a "mediocre" 3.1% in five years, well below its pre-pandemic trend, the report stated.
Despite this, the IMF's chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas said that the global economy has managed a "soft landing", with inflation easing without significant increases in unemployment.
However, the IMF has also warned of potential risks to the global economic outlook, including rising tariffs and retaliatory trade measures, which could intensify in 2025.
The report outlines several unfavourable scenarios for the global economy, including 10% increases in bilateral tariffs between the US, the EU and China, 10% increases in US tariffs on imported goods, a decline in the number of migrants to the US and Europe and a "chaotic" global financial market.
Should these scenarios materialise, global GDP output could drop by 0.8% in 2025 and 1.3% in 2026.
Vietnam's GDP is projected to reach US$500 billion in 2025, positioning the country as the 33rd largest economy in the world and the fourth largest in ASEAN, according to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.
During a conference on October 20, he stated that Vietnam's average annual growth between 2021 and 2025 is estimated to be around 6%.
"Vietnam’s economic growth rate is among the highest both regionally and globally," he remarked.
The Prime Minister also highlighted that GDP per capita is expected to grow from US$3,720 in 2021 to about US$4,900 in 2025, reflecting a 31.7% increase.
