Late last week, S&P raised its long-term sovereign credit rating for Vietnam to “BB” from “BB-”.
“The stable outlook reflects out expectation that Vietnam’s economy will continue to expand rapidly, exemplifying gradual improvements in its policy-making setting and underpinning credit metrics,” S&P wrote in a press release.
This was the first upgrade since December 2010. The upgrade reflected continued improvements in the Government’s institutional settings, which S&P believed were supporting consistently strong economic growth and development. Vietnam’s broadly balanced external accounts, strong foreign direct investment inflow and a manageable external debt burden provided further supported to the rating, it said.
S&P said the Vietnamese economy had achieved impressive development including consistently high GDP growth.
“Importantly, the Vietnamese government has delivered strong development outcomes since the global financial crisis and its own domestic banking sector crisis at the beginning of this decade,” the credit rating agency said.
“We believe the government's accession as a founding signatory to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement to Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in late 2018 reflects the government's willingness to adopt and implement necessary reforms, especially in the state sector, over the long term.”
Although Vietnam had a lower middle-income economy, with GDP per capita projected at approximately 2,695 USD in 2019, the economy was relatively diversified.
“Continued improvements in macroeconomic stability have supported a strong performance in large foreign-owned and export-focused manufacturing sectors (electronics, mobile phones, and textiles). The robust FDI-oriented economy is fuelling stronger domestic activity, particularly through the private consumption channel.”
Vietnam's per capita income increased to an estimated 2,572 USD in 2018 from approximately 1,754 USD in 2012.
According to S&P, strong FDI in manufacturing continued in 2018 despite a more challenging external environment, reflecting the resilience of Vietnam's investment environment.
“The country's competitive unit labour costs, improving educational standards and constructive demographics implied continued growth in FDI and goods exports,” the rating agency said, adding that participation in free trade agreements, including the recently established CPTPP, could provide a further upside to Vietnam's export earnings.
The country still faced a variety of domestic and external risks, such as trade disputes, elevated fiscal deficits and public debt, and q relatively weak banking sector, S&P pointed out.
Senior economist from the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam Can Van Luc said that S&P’s upgrade on Vietnam reflected the country’s stable macroeconomy, improved fiscal policy and better business climate.
The upgrade would help consolidate confidence among investors and attract more foreign investment inflow, Luc said, adding that there was still room for improvement.
Luc said the country needed to speed up its restructuring process and increase the economy’s resilience to external shocks by resolving bad debt, improving fiscal policy and increasing foreign currency reserves.
In August 2018, credit rating agency Moody’s Investors Service has also upgraded Vietnam’s long-term issuer and senior unsecured ratings to Ba3 from B1 and changed the outlook to stable from positive.
Fitch Rating in May 2018 upgraded Vietnam’s long-term foreign-currency issuer default rating to BB from BB- with a stable outlook.
VNS/VNA
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The year 2025 marked a pivotal milestone for Vietnam’s seafood industry in its restructuring process toward sustainability, transparency, and higher value creation, amid continued uncertainties in the global economic and trade environment. Prolonged inflation in major economies, the rising trend of trade protectionism, and increasingly stringent requirements related to environmental standards, traceability, and social responsibility have posed significant challenges to seafood production and exports. Nevertheless, overcoming these pressures, Vietnam’s seafood sector has gradually demonstrated its adaptability, maintained growth momentum, and laid an important foundation for the next stage of development.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Amid the increasingly evident impacts of drought and saltwater intrusion, the shrimp-rice production model in Ca Mau province continues to prove itself as a viable direction, contributing to higher farmer incomes, improved soil conditions and the promotion of ecological and sustainable agricultural development.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The management of fishing vessels, monitoring of fishing activities, and handling of violations in the fisheries sector in Lam Dong province have continued to be implemented in a synchronized and stringent manner, contributing to raising awareness of legal compliance among fishermen and aiming to end illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Can Tho’s fishery industry sustained steady growth in 2025 with total aquatic and marine output reaching nearly 783,000 tons, fulfilling 100% of the annual target. Aquaculture, capture fisheries and fishing fleet management were further strengthened, aiming for sustainable development in the coming years.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) In 2025, Vietnam’s pangasius export turnover reached nearly USD 2.2 billion, up 8% year-on-year. This result indicates that pangasius exports maintained their growth momentum despite significant volatility in the global market environment. In December 2025, pangasius export value reached USD 200 million, up 10% compared to December 2024. This solid performance in the final month of the year reflects increased import demand for consumption and inventory replenishment in key markets.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) In 2025, Vietnam’s tuna exports to Spain experienced significant fluctuations. According to Vietnam Customs, during the first 11 months of 2025, export turnover for the first 11 months of the year edged up by 0.3% year-on-year, reaching nearly $15 million.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son has signed Decision No. 16/QD-TTg, dated January 5, 2026, approving the implementation plan for the Vietnam-Israel Free Trade Agreement (VIFTA). Under the plan, in the coming period, ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-affiliated entities and People’s Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities must institutionalize and execute tasks focused on the dissemination of information regarding VIFTA and the Israeli market; legislative and institutional development, as well as enhancing competitiveness and human resource growth...
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Beyond achieving double-digit growth, Vietnam’s fish cake and surimi exports are showing a notable year-end "inflection point": the EU his accelerating with nearly twofold growth, China & Hong Kong are rising sharply, while the largest market, South Korea, signaled a slowdown in November. According to Vietnam Customs data, export turnover of fish cake and surimi reached $327 million in the first 11 months of 2025, up 22% year-on-year; November 2025 alone accounted for $35 million, marking a 5% increase. This serves as a critical foundation for exporters to reassess market structures and competitive intensity while finalizing order strategies for 2026.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Ca Mau, widely regarded as the nation’s “shrimp capital”, continued its strong performance in 2025 as shrimp output reached nearly 600,000 tons, maintaining its position as Vietnam’s leading shrimp-producing locality.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) On December 29, 2025, at the 2025 Pangasius Industry Review Conference held in Can Tho City, the Vietnam Pangasius Association announced that fingerling prices have surged to record levels due to acute supply shortages.
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