Foreign exchange reserves reach new peak

Phuc said at a forum Monday that the State Bank of Vietnam has bought $20 billion in foreign currencies this year.

He noted the increase in foreign exchange reserves, used to stabilize currency and control inflation, was among the positive economic indicators of 2019. Although there were concerns over growth as the scale of the economy expanded, the opposite had happened, he added.

The scale of the economy was up 1.3 times this year over 2015, but it still maintained a growth rate of over 7 percent for the second year in a row.

"The economy is seeing declining dependence on mining and increasing contribution of technology and innovation," the PM said.

Vietnam’s exports also grew 8.1 percent, pushing trade value to a record high of $517 billion. The economy also recorded a trade surplus for the fourth year in a row, with this year’s figure reading $9.9 billion.

GDP growth of 7.02 percent in 2019 had slowed from a record 7.08 percent in 2018, but was the second highest growth figure in the last decade, according to the General Statistics Office.