Address the opening session of the National Assembly in Hanoi on Thursday, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, however, acknowledged that the country could face an uphill battle in meeting the targets.

The global financial crisis and the danger of a world economic recession 'have negative impact on our economy, posing us with more difficult tasks of stabilising macro economy and maintaining growth in the coming time,' he said.

Vietnam's gross domestic product, or GDP, grew 8.5 per cent last year and expanded 6.5 per cent in the first nine months of this year.

Facing with world economic uncertainties, the government has recently revised its growth target to 7 per cent for this year from previous target of 8.5 per cent.

The country's inflation rose to 27.9 per cent in Sept, easing slightly from the 17-year high hit in Aug. The inflation for the first nine months hit 22 per cent and the government projected that inflation for the whole 2007 could reach 24 per cent.

Mr Dung said fighting inflation remains top priority of his government.

The government will continue to pursue tighter financial and fiscal policy, delay or postpone unnecessary investment projects, tighten control on loans for real estate development and stocks and promote exports, he said.

The government also targets to bring inflation to a single digit in 2010, Dung said.

The Asian Development Bank recently warned that Vietnam's high economic growth target could hurt the country in the long term if it fails to clamp down on spiraling inflation.

The bank in a report last month revised the growth target for Vietnam this year down to 6.5 per cent from 7 per cent. In 2009, it projects 6 per cent growth, down from the previous estimate of 8.1 per cent. -- AP