Actual FDI in Vietnam hits record high in 2018 amid trade war

TIN LIÊN QUAN
	Vietnam expects more investment out of China
	Vietnam becomes Asia’s hottest investment destination: Forbes

Disbursement of FDI projects in Vietnam in 2018 jumped to a record high of US$19.1 billion, representing an increase of 9.1% year-on-year despite the ongoing trade tensions between the United States and China, a report of the Foreign Investment Agency (FIA) under the Ministry of Planning and Investment has shown.

A number of fund managers and experts have said China-based companies may shift production to Vietnam to avoid tariffs.

According to the agency, 3,046 new projects have been approved with total investment capital of US$18 billion in 2018, down 15.5% year-on-year, while 1,169 existing projects have injected an additional US$7.59 billion, sliding 9.7% year-on-year.

Meanwhile, 6,496 projects have had US$9.89 billion in capital contributed by foreign investors, up 59.8% year-on-year.

Foreign direct investment (FDI) commitments in 2018 totaled US$35.46 billion, slipping 1.2% year-on-year. (Photo: Nguyen Tung)

Investors have invested in 18 fields and sectors, in which manufacturing and processing continued to attract substantial attention with investment of US$16.58 billion, accounting for 46.7% of total capital approvals.

Real estate was the second most heavily invested, with US$6.6 billion, or 18.6% of total registered capital, followed by retail and wholesale with US$3.67 billion or 10.3%.

Among 112 countries and territories that have invested in Vietnam this year, Japan takes the lead with US$8.59 billion, accounting for 24.2% of total investment. South Korea comes second with US$7.2 billion or 20.3% of total investment, while the third place belongs to Singapore with US$5 billion or 14.2%.

Among 59 cities and provinces having received foreign investment, Ha Noi attracted the largest portion of registered capital with US$7.5 billion, or 21.2% of total investment, followed by Ho Chi Minh City with US$5.9 billion, and Hai Phong with US$3.1 billion.

The biggest-ticket projects this year include the smart city project in Dong Anh district, Ha Noi with total investment capital of US$4.138 billion by Japanese trader Sumitomo Corporation; the US$1.2-billion polypropylene manufacturing plant by Hyosung Corporation (South Korea) located at Cai Mep Industrial Zone in Ba Ria - Vung Tau; the Laguna hospitality project with additional fund of US$1.12 billion from Singaporean investors.

Additionally, Vietnam licensed the US$600-million Lotte Mall Ha Noi project that embraces a hotel, apartment, office, and trade center complex; and the LG Innotek Hai Phong facility with additional capital of US$501 million for manufacturing camera modules.

So far, foreign investors have committed to pour over US$340.1 billion in Vietnam, with South Korea taking the lead with US$62.5 billion or 18.3% of the total, followed by Japan and Singapore.

Import-export value hits close to US$420 billion over 11 month span Vietnam’s total import-export value from the beginning of the year up to November 15 has increased by a total of 13.7% to US$418.45 billion compared ...

Ha Noi seeks partnership with French businesses in multiple areas Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Chung met with representatives from 30 French enterprises in various sectors in the capital city on November ...

Mekong Delta provinces attract more foreign investment Provinces in the Mekong Delta drew a total of 99 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects in the first nine months of 2018, said Nguyen Phuong ...