Prime Minister: Not all members of society benefit from globalization

Speaking at the official opening session of the APEC Finance Ministers' Meeting 2017 (FMM 2017) held in Hoi An City (Quang Nam) this morning (October 21), Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said that APEC is still facing many difficulties and challenges.Not all members of society benefit from globalization.

Attending the opening session were Heads of Delegations and senior representatives of 21 APEC member economies and international financial organizations such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank (WB), Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)...

Overview of the APEC 2017 Finance Ministers' Meeting on the morning of October 21 in Hoi An

Chaired by the Minister of Finance of Vietnam, Chairman of FMM 2017 Dinh Tien Dung, in the meetings held this morning (October 21), delegates attending the APEC Finance Ministers' Meeting 2017 had a discussion on the macroeconomic situation, economic growth, financial cooperation in the region and globally, including outstanding economic issues, challenges to APEC economies and appropriate response policies.

Next, Ministers, Heads of Delegation of 21 APEC member economies and delegates attending FMM 2017 discussed priority topics in the APEC Finance Ministers' Process 2017 including long-term investment in infrastructure, combating tax base erosion and profit shifting, disaster risk financing and insurance, and financial inclusion.

Prime Minister takes souvenir photo with Finance Ministers of APEC member countries

Speaking at the conference, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc was delighted to welcome the Ministers and Heads of Delegations attending the 24th APEC Finance Ministers' Meeting and related important events in Quang Nam - a place with two UNESCO-recognized world heritages: Hoi An ancient town and My Son Sanctuary.

“Our conference takes place in the context of the global economy continuing to recover, and global trade, investment and finance continuing to improve. The APEC region with the world's leading economies and many dynamically developing economies continues to be an important driving force for global growth,” Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said.

Prime Minister meets with delegates from countries attending the conference

However, according to the Prime Minister, APEC is still facing many difficulties and challenges. Growth rates and productivity in some economies are still low. At the recent meeting of Deputy Finance Ministers and Deputy Governors of Central Banks, ADB predicted that regional trade growth is showing signs of slowing down, protectionism and non-tariff measures are on the rise... In addition, the 4th industrial revolution is both an opportunity and a challenge for all of us.

The Prime Minister emphasized: “Practice shows that not all members of society benefit from the process of globalization and trade and investment liberalization. Climate change is causing many adverse impacts on the development of economies. What is particularly worrying is that our region has a number of hot spots that threaten the peaceful, secure and stable environment for development.”

Prime Minister speaks at APEC Finance Ministers' Meeting 2017 on the morning of October 21

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc also said that the difficulties and challenges are enormous, while our resources, especially financial resources, are still limited. This requires our joint efforts to maintain a peaceful and stable environment while sharing experiences and cooperating creatively and effectively for prosperous and sustainable development.

Referring to Vietnam's socio-economy, the Prime Minister said that in 30 years of implementing renovation, from a poor, underdeveloped country, Vietnam has strived to rise up and since 2010 (according to the WB), Vietnam has been in the group of developing economies with middle income.

Accordingly, in 2016, GDP reached 6.21%, but by 2017, GDP increased to a high level of 6.7%; inflation remained stable at under 5%, budget deficit under 4%, public debt within the allowable limit (65% of GDP); exports reached over 200 billion USD (up 15%), foreign investment disbursement was estimated at 15 billion USD (up 18%). By the end of the third quarter of 2017, the stock market exceeded 800 points, the highest since 2008. Capital market capitalization reached 93% of GDP. In the period of 2016-2020, GDP is expected to increase by an average of 6.5%-7%/year.

The Prime Minister said that to achieve this positive result, there is an important contribution from the public financial sector with the increase of stable and effective revenue sources, as well as the development of the financial market.

“Despite many difficulties and challenges, the Vietnamese Government, in the spirit of development creation, taking drastic actions, serving the people and businesses, continues to innovate and restructure the economy, especially the financial sector, towards improving efficiency, quality and competitiveness, sustainable and inclusive growth,” Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc affirmed.

According to Dan Tri