Chinese businesses sharply increase investment in Vietnam
Investors from mainland China have been developing their businesses in Vietnam to take advantage of free trade agreements (FTAs), as the country is a Trans-Pacific Partnership member.
According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Foreign Investment Agency, Chinese businesses sharply increased their investment capital from US$312 million in 2012 to US$2.3 billion in 2013 and US$7.9 billion in 2014.
Currently, some 1,346 Chinese projects are in operation in Vietnam, with total registered capital of US$10.4 billion, making China the 9th largest investor of the 112 nations and territories investing in the country.
The Chinese projects are each worth US$7.7 million on average, half the average value of foreign investment projects in Vietnam.
Data released by the Planning and Investment Ministry’s Foreign Investment Agency showed that Chinese businesses have been focusing on investments in processing and manufacturing industries in Vietnam, with 916 projects worth US$5.38 billion, accounting for 68% of the total number of Chinese projects in Vietnam.
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The businesses have invested in 54 of the total 63 cities and provinces nationwide, concentrating on areas with good infrastructure that are close to the Vietnam –China border or where many Chinese live, such as in the northern provinces of Lao Cai, Quang Ninh and Haiphong and in HCM City.
The southern central province of Binh Thuan has attracted the highest investment capital from Chinese businesses, with more than US$2 billion spread over five projects. It’s followed by southern Tay Ninh Province, with 36 projects worth US$1.2 billion, and northern Ha Giang Province, with five projects worth more than US$1 billion.
By the end of 2015, Vietnam invested in 15 projects in China, with total registered capital of more than US$16 million, focusing on production and service. This included a US$3 million project to construct a trade centre by Viet Trang Import-Export Joint Stock Company and a US$6 million workshop for the production and trade of weighing scales.
Speaking at a Vietnam –China business forum held in Hanoi earlier this year, Deputy Head of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s International Relations Division Pham Quang Thinh said when the TPP agreements are fully approved, Vietnam was recognised as a gateway to enter the markets of ASEAN members and the rest of the world due to its geographic advantages and dynamic economy.
