After reaching its highest nine-month growth in the past 12 years, Vietnam is poised to become Southeast Asia's fastest growing economy this year.

Le Trung Hieu, deputy general director of the General Statistics Office, said the agency expects Vietnam's economy to grow by 8% in 2022 despite the not-so-positive economic status of the last quarter.

The economy grew by 8.83% in the first nine months, the highest for the period since 2011-2022, thanks to a 13.67% surge in the third quarter.

Frederic Neumann, co-head of Asian Economic Research at Hong Kong-based HSBC Holdings, said Vietnam was a bright spot amidst a gloomy global economy.

The World Bank predicts Vietnam's GDP could grow by 7.2% in 2022, the highest in East Asia and the Pacific region. "Vietnam will continue to be Southeast Asia's fastest growing economy in 2023 and even beyond," Neumann said.

Speaking at an event in Ho Chi Minh City last Thursday, EuroCham chairman Alain Cany said Vietnam's prospects were still quite good.

Brook Taylor, CEO of VinaCapital Asset Management, said Vietnam's long-term prospects were promising. "We forecast Vietnam to grow 8% this year and 6% over the next decade."