Mechanic production at Japanese-invested company in the northern port city of Hai Phong (Photo: VNA)
According to the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment, as of May 20th, Vietnam granted new investment licenses to 1,076 FDI projects with total registered capital of nearly USD4.66 billion, up 14.6 percent in volume but down 16.8 percent in value.
As many as 393 existing projects registered to increase capital by a total of nearly USD2.5 billion in January-May, raising total newly-licensed and increased-capital foreign investment to about USD7.15 billion in the five months, an annual decline of 30.8 percent.
The FDI sector has become an important part in Vietnam’s economy, contributing about 25 percent to social investment capital and 20 percent to gross domestic product, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment.
Close to 58 percent of total FDI capital has went to the processing and manufacturing industries, helping Vietnam increase the value of products and make domestic economic sectors more competitive.
In 2017, the FDI sector made up 72 percent of total export value and generated about 3.5 million direct jobs and 5 million indirect jobs.
Vietnam remained an attractive destination for foreign investors in 2017 with total registered FDI capital hitting a record of USD35.88 billion, up 44.4 percent against last year.
The most attractive sectors were manufacturing-processing industries, electricity production and distribution and real estate.
Among 115 countries and territories investing in Vietnam in 2017, Japan topped the list, with USD9.11 billion, making up 25.4 percent of the total.
It was followed by the Republic of Korea with USD8.49 billion or 23.7 percent of the FDI, and Singapore with USD5.3 billion or 14.8 percent./.