Vietnam aiming for 7-8pc growth

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HANOI, Aug 14 (AFP): The Vietnamese government has targetted economic growth of seven to eight per cent in 2009 and aims to win its fight against soaring inflation, state media said today.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung yesterday asked officials to draw up a plan to achieve the growth objective, and to bring inflation back to "single digits by the end of 2009," the Tin Tuc daily reported.

Inflation surged to an annual rate of 27 per cent in July after rocketing food and fuel costs saddled Vietnam with one of Asia's toughest battles against rising prices.

State-run oil firms hiked petrol prices by 31 per cent in July, and thousands of workers staged a strike this month demanding higher wages to match the rising cost of living.

The government has said fighting inflation is its top priority. It has raised interest rates and taken other steps to limit credit growth, as well as lowering its 2008 economic growth target to seven per cent from 8.5 per cent.