HANOI: In a shocking revelation, Vietnam's Planning and Investment Minister Nguyen Chi Dung has announced that the country may face a 0.15% decline in GDP growth for 2024 due to the catastrophic effects of Typhoon Yagi, the most powerful storm to hit Asia this year.

Last Saturday, Typhoon Yagi made landfall, unleashing destruction on vital infrastructure and factories across the nation. The estimated economic toll is staggering, with costs amounting to approximately 40 trillion dong ($1.63 billion), as reported by the Vietnam News Agency (VNA).

Minister Dung warned that the economic growth rates for the latter half of the year are anticipated to diminish, predicting a GDP reduction of 0.35% in the third quarter and 0.22% in the fourth quarter when compared to forecasts without the storm’s destructive influence.

Prior to this disaster, the ministry had optimistically projected that Vietnam's economy would grow by a robust 7% in 2023. However, the impact of Typhoon Yagi has rewritten these expectations, leaving the government scrambling to evaluate the full scale of the damage.

As of Sunday morning, statistics from Vietnam's disaster agency confirmed a heart-wrenching human toll: at least 281 lives lost and 67 individuals reported missing. The agricultural sector has not been spared either; approximately 190,000 hectares (469,500 acres) of rice fields were submerged, alongside 48,000 hectares dedicated to cash crops like corn and cassava. Nearly 232,000 homes in northern Vietnam have also suffered damage.

The city of Haiphong, which hosts several key industrial parks, reported losses amounting to about 11 trillion dong ($448.43 million) due to the storm. This incident marks a severe challenge for the Vietnamese government, which has vowed to manage inflation and aims to achieve a GDP growth rate of around 7% for the year, despite the crippling aftermath of Typhoon Yagi.

As the nation grapples with this crisis, all eyes are on the government's response to help restore livelihoods and rebuild the affected areas. Will Vietnam be able to bounce back, or are first signs of a prolonged economic setback on the horizon? Only time will tell.