Vietnam recorded a fiscal deficit of VND26.8 trillion (US$1.14 billion) in the nine months through September, widening from a deficit of VND1.7 trillion (US$72.69 million) recorded one month earlier. SEE MORE Macroeconomic targets were built with the presumed crude oil price at below $50 per barrel. However, the price has exceeded the $90 per barrel threshold, nearing $100. SEE MORE The Vietnamese economy is stepping into the late phase of the business cycle, while FDI corporations alone cannot drive the economy, according to Vietnam Dragon Securities Corporation (VDSC). SEE MORE Vietnam’s economy grew 6.81% in 2017, and is likely to attain a higher growth rate this year. While Samsung was the key driver of economic growth in 2017, Formosa and Nghi Son Refinery will take over this role in 2018. SEE MORE Given the gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 6.88% in the third quarter of 2018, the Vietnam Institute for Economic and Policy Research (VEPR) forecast the country’s full-year growth target of 6.5%-6.7% is attainable, and the rate is more likely to surpass 6.8%, underpinned by the foreign direct investment (FDI) sector’s strong performance. SEE MORE