Vietnam’s economy may rebound faster next year
Cannon, the chief executive officer of Liverpool-based consultant firm Ideopolis International Ltd. has worked as a senior advisor for 30 multinational firms, such as American Express, Microsoft, Airbus, Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) and IBM.
He is currently in Vietnam to deliver presentations in three international seminars themed “Sustaining growth in Turbulent Times: the Roles of Knowledge and Talent in Vietnam’s Future Development” in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
Cannon said the economic crisis in Asia had bottomed out and the region’s economies are showing signs of recovery, possibly enjoying high growth over the next nine months to one year. However, he predicted a different story for the more mature economies in North America and Europe, saying respite from the downturn would have to wait for around three years.
“I think the economy has bottomed out,” Cannon told Sai Gon Giai Phong (Sai Gon Liberated) newspaper on Tuesday. “Vietnam’s economy is showing positive signs of bouncing back in the final few months of 2009 and it will recover even faster in 2010.”
Vietnam’s export industry, a key driver of the economy, is enjoying a number of competitive advantages, especially in the case of food exports, said Cannon, who is also the author of the Guinness Book of Business Records.
The country’s pool of skilled, hard-working laborers who are willing to work for long hours also help create competitive products, according to Cannon.
At Wednesday’s seminar, Cannon stressed the importance of engineering a shift from a low-end manufacturing base and primary resources exporter to a knowledge-based economy, The Saigon Times Daily reported.
“The more you exploit your raw natural resources like crude oil and pit coal, the less they exist,” he said. “But knowledge resources make a difference. The more you use them, the more they generate and develop.” “Taking full advantage of knowledge capital – but not natural resources – for the future growth of Vietnam is vital to the country,” Cannon said.
Cannon forecast Vietnam’s urban population would leap from 29 percent of the country’s population to more than 50 percent by the early 2040s. Cannon will also speak at the Vietnam National University in Hanoi on July 31 and Sheraton Saigon Hotel & Towers in Ho Chi Minh City on August 4.
