With this momentum, the growth target of over 8% in 2025 is expected to be feasible, as domestic consumption continues to be the main driving force besides investment and production.
stimulating consumer demand to boost GDP growth
According to data from the Statistics Office (Ministry of Finance), GDP growth in the second quarter of 2025 reached 7.96% over the same period, reaching 7.52% in the first 6 months of the year - this is the highest level since 2011. Evaluating this result, Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Dao Tung - Director of the Academy of Finance - said that the high GDP growth in the first half of 2025 will be achieved mainly based on factors such as consumption (up 7.95%) and investment (up 7.98%), instead of relying on exports as a year ago.
We can be confident that open fiscal policies such as tax exemptions, reductions, increased public investment or loose monetary measures such as lowering interest rates, increasing credit limits, and flexibly adjusting exchange rates are truly a support for Vietnamese enterprises in the context of many uncertainties in the world economy - Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Dao Tung assessed.
According to Dr. Nguyen Nhu Quynh - Director of the Center for Economic and Financial Strategy and Policy, with a flexible management policy, Vietnam's fiscal policy in 2025 is no longer limited to the role of supporting growth in the short term, but is being reshaped as a strategic, proactive and integrated pillar - both creating momentum for economic growth, ensuring macroeconomic stability and effective control of prices.
Fiscal policy for 2025 continues to promote its pivotal role in supporting economic recovery, through the measure of extending, reducing, and suspending taxes, fees, charges, and public investment expenditures. These measures contribute to stimulating total demand, reducing production and business costs and promoting private sector investment according to the orientation of Resolution 68/NQ-TW of the Politburo on private economic development" - Dr. Nguyen Nhu Quynh assessed.
According to Dr. Nguyen Nhu Quynh, in the first months of 2025, many support policies have been and continue to be implemented such as reducing VAT from 10% to 8% for some goods and services, reducing environmental protection tax on gasoline, reducing 50% of registration fees for domestic cars, incentives for electric cars... The total amount of money reduced and extended is estimated to be about 106.7 trillion VND by the end of June 2025 (a reduction of about 48.8 trillion VND, an extension of about 57.9 trillion VND).
The total support for people and businesses in 2025 is expected to reach about 232.6 trillion VND, about 35 trillion VND higher than in 2024. In particular, extending the policy of reducing VAT by 2% by the end of 2026 may reduce budget revenue by more than VND 120 trillion, but it is considered an effective measure to stimulate consumption.
Dr. Nguyen Nhu Quynh assessed that these policies have had quite clear practical results when all macro indicators improved: GDP in the first 6 months of 2025 increased by 7.52% - the highest since 2011.
Flexibly manage prices, control inflation to maintain macroeconomic stability
The average consumer price index (CPI) in the first 6 months of 2025 increased by 3.27%, while core inflation increased by 3.16% over the same period last year. Vietnam's inflation is being controlled within the target range set by the National Assembly and the Government of 4.5 - 5%, contributing to stabilizing the macro economy.
According to Ms. Vu Huong Tra - Price Management Department (Ministry of Finance), this is an appropriate level to support economic growth in the context of focused resources being promoted to achieve the highest economic growth rate. However, the second half of 2025 still has many potential factors putting pressure on prices, requiring price management to be flexible, timely and effective.
Ms. Vu Huong Tra said that the target of controlling CPI in 2025 at 4.5 - 5% will be implemented in parallel with supporting production, people's lives and managing public service prices according to a suitable roadmap, closely following market developments.
