New York (VNA) – Vietnam’s containing of theCOVID-19 pandemic allowed quick reopening of local businesses, and the countryis now expected to be the world’s fastest growing economy in 2020, said RuchirSharma, the chief global strategist at Morgan Stanley Investment Management.

Sharma made the statement in his article, titled “Is Vietnamthe Next ‘Asian Miracle’?” published by the New York Times on October 13.

According to the article, within days following China’s announcementits first COVID-19 case, Vietnam mobilised different resources to stop thespread of the coronavirus. Rapid isolation of outbreaks has kept Vietnam’sdeath rate among the four lowest in the world, it said.

While many nations are suffering enormous economiccontractions and running to the International Monetary Fund for financialrescues, Vietnam is growing at a 3 percent annual pace. Its growth is driven bya record trade surplus, despite the collapse in global trade.

The author noted during their boom years, the original Asianmiracles — first Japan, then Taiwan and the Republic of Korea, and mostrecently China —  produced annual exportgrowth close to 20 percent, which were nearly double the average for low- ormiddle-income nations at the time. Vietnam has sustained a similar pace forthree decades. Even as global trade slumped in the 2010s, Vietnam’s exportsgrew 16 percent a year, by far the fastest rate in the world, and three timesthe emerging-world average.

He said Vietnam devotes its resources to exports, buildingroads and ports to get goods overseas and building schools to educate workers,adding that the Vietnamese government annually invests about 8 percent of GDPeach year on new building projects.

According to the article, over the last five years, foreigndirect investment has averaged more than 6 percent of Vietnam’s GDP, thehighest rate of any emerging country. Most of it goes to building manufacturingplants and related infrastructure, and most of it now comes from Asiancountries, including the Republic of Korea, Japan and China.
Sharma considered Vietnam a favourite destination for exportmanufacturers. Average annual per capita income in Vietnam has quintupled sincethe late 1980s to nearly 3,000 USD per person. Tech, which surpassed garmentand textiles to become Vietnam’s leading export in 2015, accounts for most of thecountry’s record trade surplus this year.

He also highlighted that in a protectionist era, Vietnam is atrend-bending by signing more than a dozen free trade agreements, including a recentlandmark deal with the European Union.

The author concluded the article by saying: “Vietnam lookslike a miracle from a bygone era, exporting its way to prosperity.”/.