Viet Nam officially elevated to upper-middle income status
VGP - Viet Nam has officially been reclassified as an upper-middle-income economy by the World Bank (WB) as the country's gross national income (GNI) per capita rose to nearly US$5,000 last year.
According to the WB's annual country classification released on July 1, Viet Nam's GNI per capita increased from US$4,490 in 2024 to US$4,970 in 2025, lifting the country from the lower-middle-income to the upper-middle-income category.
The bank attributed Viet Nam's reclassification to its strong economic growth and export performance. During 2024–2025, exports expanded by more than 15 percent, while GDP grew by 7 percent in 2024 and 8 percent in 2025.
Over the 2021–2025 period, Viet Nam's GNI grew at an average annual rate of 10 percent, which the WB experts described as "one of the strongest sustained growth rates in the region."
Viet Nam has set a goal of becoming a developing country with modern industry and upper-middle-income status by 2030, before advancing to high-income developed country status by 2045. To achieve this objective, the Government is aiming to maintain economic growth of 10 percent or higher in the coming years.
This year, the WB assessed 218 economies, with six countries moving up to a higher income category. Besides Viet Nam, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Jordan, and Micronesia were also upgraded from the lower-middle-income to the upper-middle-income group.
The bank's income classification helps determine countries' eligibility for concessional financing and development assistance and serves as an important benchmark for tracking global economic trends.
However, the reclassification of the six countries does not affect the WB's current lending policies. For example, Viet Nam and the Philippines remain eligible to borrow from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), while Sri Lanka continues to qualify for concessional financing from the International Development Association (IDA)./.
