APD | Hong Kong continues to be leading foreign investor in Vietnam

By APD writer Alice

Hanoi, Mar. 28 (APD) – Hong Kong (China) continued to top the list of 74 countries and territories investing in Vietnam in the first quarter of 2019 with 4.4 billion USD, according to the Foreign Investment Agency (FIA) under the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment.

It was followed by Singapore (1.46 billion USD), the Republic of Korea (1.3 billion USD), mainland China (1 billion USD), and Japan (700 million USD).

Hong Kong secured the position after many years thanks to a 3.85 billion USD beer production project in Hanoi and another project worth 260 million USD producing electronic and internet equipment and multimedia audio products.

Foreign direct investment (FDI) registered in the Southeast Asian nation during the period hit the highest level since 2016, reaching 10.8 billion USD as of March 20, up 86.2 percent year-on-year.

This included 3.82 billion USD for 785 new projects, rising by 80.1 percent. However, capital pumped into existing projects, at nearly 1.3 billion USD for 279 existing ones, was equal to only 72.5 percent of the figure in the corresponding period last year. About 5.68 billion USD, or 52.6 percent of the total figure, was registered to buy shares, three times the figure of one year ago.

Foreign investors poured money into 18 sectors, with 8.4 billion USD or 77.7 percent channelled into processing and manufacturing. Real estate (778.2 million USD) and science-technology (383.2 million USD) came second and third in terms of FDI attraction. 

The FDI capital flowed into 49 provinces and cities. Hanoi was the biggest destination, attracting over 4.15 billion USD. Ho Chi Minh City and Binh Duong province followed with 1.57 billion USD and 625.6 million USD, respectively.

Between January and March, 4.12 billion USD of FDI projects were disbursed, up 6.2 percent from the year previous.

According to the FIA, the foreign-invested sector exported 41.45 billion USD worth of goods, including crude oil, during the three months, rising 2.7 percent year-on-year and accounting for 70.8 percent of Vietnam’s total exports. Excluding crude oil, the figure stood at 40.95 billion USD, up 2.8 percent and making up 70 percent of the total shipments.

The FDI sector recorded a trade surplus of 7.57 billion USD (including crude oil) and 7.06 billion USD (excluding crude oil). 

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)