Vietnam GDP grows at fastest rate

Hanoi: Vietnam’s economy grew 6.81 per cent this year — its strongest rate for a decade — thanks in part to surging exports, data showed. Full-year GDP growth was slightly above the government target of 6.7 per cent and outstripped the 6.21 per cent posted for 2016, the General Statistics Office (GSO) said. Growth was driven by the agriculture, seafood and forestry sectors, according to GSO head Nguyen Bich Lam. “The efficient recovery of agricultural production and the development of the aqua sector are the main reasons for growth,” he told reporters. Total exports were worth more than $213 billion this year, a 21 per cent jump from 2016, the GSO said. — AFP