Vietnam says Q1 GDP likely to shrink 1% y/y as Lunar New Year holidays, virus hurt

Vietnam's gross domestic product in the first quarter of this year will likely contract 1% from a year earlier due to China's fast-spreading coronavirus epidemic and a week-long Lunar New Year holiday, the government said on Wednesday. Vietnam's aviation, tourism, agriculture industries and exports are expected to take a hit from the epidemic, the government said in a statement.

"If the Chinese economy slowed significantly, it would continue to impact Vietnam," the statement said. China, where the epidemic has killed 490 people, is Vietnam's largest trading partner.