The registered investment capital included 5.6 billion USD for 504 projects licensed in the reviewed period, said FIA Chief Phan Huu Thang on August 25. He stressed that the new investment capital was equivalent to just 10.8 percent of the same period last year.
In the reviewed period, investors saw an increase in capital for their 149 existing projects of 4.8 billion USD--up 3.8 percent against the same period last year.
“The rise in existing investment capital shows investors are confident of the likelihood that the Vietnamese national economy will recover and in its potential for development,” said the foreign investment chief.
The most optimistic sign coming from FDI in the aforementioned period was that 6.5 billion USD was disbursed. The figure was equivalent to 91.8 percent of the same period last year.
The official commented that with this pace of disbursement, the country is likely to fulfil this year’s goal of disbursing 9 billion USD of FDI.
According to FIA, foreign investors were greatly interested in hotel and restaurant - 20 projects newly-registered were capitalised at 755 million USD and three existing projects saw their capital go up by a combined 3.8 billion USD in these fields.
The manufacturing and processing industry surpassed the real estate sector in terms of new capital, with two new steel production projects, by the China Steel Corp (Taiwan-China) and Sumitomo Metal (Japan), registering as much as 1.14 billion USD.
In the reviewed period, the US became Vietnam’s largest investor with 3.95 billion USD, followed by Taiwan with 1.35 billion USD and the British Virgin Islands with 1.24 billion USD. There are 35 countries and territories investing in Vietnam.
The southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau topped other localities in FDI attraction during the period, drawing in 6.48 billion USD. It was followed by Ho Chi Minh City (1.04 billion USD), the southern province of Binh Duong (755 million USD), Hanoi (367 million USD) and the southern province of Dong Nai (281 million USD).
(VFEJ, 27/8/2009)