HCMC - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has forecast that Vietnam’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2020 would surpass that of Singapore to emerge as the fourth biggest economy in Southeast Asia.

According to the IMF’s recent report, Vietnam’s GDP this year is estimated at US$340.6 billion, exceeding the US$337.5 billion from Singapore and US$336.3 billion from Malaysia. By surpassing Singapore, Vietnam will trail behind only Indonesia (US$1,088.8 billion), Thailand (US$509.2 billion) and the Philippines (US$367.4 billion) in the region. The IMF also forecast that Vietnam's GDP per capita will increase from US$3,416 last year to US$3,497 this year to rank sixth in Southeast Asia, surpassing the Philippines (US$3,372), Laos (US$2,567), Cambodia (US$1,572) and Myanmar (US$1,332). Being one of the most successful countries in containing the Covid-19 pandemic, Vietnam is also among the few countries in the world that would achieve positive economic growth this year, with a growth rate of 1.6%. IMF’s forecast is close to that of the Asian Development Bank, which predicted that Vietnam’s GDP would grow 1.8% in 2020. According to the Vietnam General Statistics Office, the country’s GDP rose by 2.12% from January to September 2020, the lowest nine-month growth rate over the past decade.