Vietnam Pursues Ambitious Growth And Tech Expansion Amid US Relations

Vietnam’s Prime Minister, Pham Minh Chinh, confirmed that the country’s leadership is actively engaging with the new U.S. administration, highlighting recent communication between Party General Secretary To Lam and President Donald Trump. Speaking at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Chinh expressed confidence in managing the evolving relationship with the U.S., stating that his government has already made “some approaches” to Trump’s administration. “We think we can handle the relationship with the US,” Chinh added.

As Vietnam pursues an ambitious 8% growth target for the year, it faces potential challenges due to the shifting landscape of U.S. trade policies, particularly concerning tariffs. While Vietnam benefitted from the U.S.-China trade war, its growing trade surplus with the U.S. and President Trump’s focus on bringing manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. have made the country a target for protectionist measures.

In response to concerns about the trade imbalance, Chinh assured that Vietnam is working on solutions to address the issue, including purchasing American high-tech products, such as Boeing planes. His remarks came alongside a light-hearted comment about his willingness to play golf with President Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort if it would benefit the country. “If playing golf can help bring benefits to my country and my people, then I can play golf all day long,” Chinh quipped, prompting laughter from the audience.

Despite global economic uncertainties, Vietnam’s economy demonstrated robust growth in the fourth quarter of the previous year, expanding 7.55%—exceeding expectations and pushing total annual growth to 7.09%. This performance significantly surpassed the government’s target for 2024. Looking ahead, Chinh emphasized the government’s ambitious economic vision, setting a growth target of 6.5%-7% for 2025 and aiming for 8% growth in the near future.

In addition to its economic focus, Vietnam is undergoing significant political reforms. The Communist Party has initiated plans to reduce the government’s size by approximately 20%, aiming to streamline bureaucracy and cut costs. The country’s political landscape also experienced a shift following the death of its long-serving Communist Party General Secretary, a change that Chinh described as “a generation of leadership without warning.”

On the technological front, Vietnam is positioning itself as a rising hub for artificial intelligence (AI) and semiconductor development. Chinh confirmed that the government is implementing new policies to encourage AI growth and is working on creating a national database that will link various ministries and localities. This push is part of a broader strategy to attract foreign investment in the tech sector, with global tech giants such as Intel, Apple suppliers, and Samsung Electronics already investing in Vietnam’s manufacturing landscape.

Samsung’s recent decision to invest in a second research and development (R&D) center in Hanoi is part of Vietnam’s broader push to develop its tech infrastructure. Chinh also revealed that the government is collaborating with Nvidia Corp. to establish more R&D facilities, as well as investing in a training program aimed at developing a workforce of 50,000-100,000 engineers in the semiconductor and AI sectors.

Vietnam’s long-term vision includes making the semiconductor industry a central pillar of its economy, with a goal of generating over $100 billion annually by 2050. As part of its strategy, the government plans to establish three big data centers and three AI centers by 2030. Party General Secretary To Lam has stressed that Vietnam’s priority is to become a modern industrialized nation by 2030, with the ultimate goal of achieving developed country status by 2045.

These developments reflect Vietnam’s growing ambition to become a global technology and manufacturing hub, attracting crucial foreign investment and advancing its technological capabilities to support future economic growth.