However, Lich pointed out that the competitiveness of Vietnamese businesses remained low, especially in high-tech industries, capital-intensive sectors and high-end services.
There are some 550,000 existing firms in Vietnam, but only one-fourth of them were capable of exporting, he said, adding that there was also a lack of stability in the quality of their products.
Other problems included high input costs, infrastructure inadequacies, and loose links in the production chain.
It is now time for Vietnamese businesses to restructure and to mature, according to Lich.
He noted that bad debt, public debt and institutional reforms, in addition to strengthening local markets, must be thoroughly tackled.
Faster than ever
Vietnam is integrating more rapidly than any other ASEAN country, except Singapore, according to Vo Tri Thanh, deputy director of the Centre Institute of Economic Management.
He also believes that the Vietnamese economy will enter a new thriving period, marked by participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
He urged Vietnamese to study new-generation FTAs carefully to understand rules of origin and meet technical norms to allow for participation in these markets.
Thanh further predicted that there would be a boom in the consumption and service industries to benefit end-users.
Thanh also said, at a recent conference held by the Vietnam Association of Consumer Goods, that creation of a 400-page economic strategy report, entitled 2035, would be officially announced this week.
