HANOI: Vietnam’s economy slowed in the first quarter of 2016, official figures showed on Friday, hampered by low oil prices and an ongoing drought that has hit the agricultural sector hard. The dip followed a record surge in economic growth last year, the peak of a five-year boom fuelled by a flurry of international interest in the communist country. The first three months of 2016 saw GDP growth drop to 5.46 per cent, down from 6.12 per cent for the same period last year, according to data released by the General Statistics Office. Lower global oil prices have also weighed on growth, affecting the country’s income from crude production.