Vietnam attracts US$5.8 billion in FDI in first quarter
The flow of foreign direct investment (FDI) into Vietnam in the first quarter of 2018 witnessed a significant yearly decline of 25% to US$5.8 billion, but disbursement rose by 7.2% year-on-year to US$3.88 billion.
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The Foreign Investment Agency (FIA) under the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MoPI) reported that processing and manufacturing remained the most attractive sector to foreign investors, receiving commitments of US$3.44 billion and accounting for 59.4% of the total commitments.
The retail and wholesale sectors received the second largest chunk of FDI with US$531 million or 9.2%, followed by the real estate sector with US$486 million or 8.4%.
The Republic of Korea (RoK) has remained the biggest foreign investor among 76 countries and territories investing in Vietnam in the first quarter of 2018, with a total registered capital of US$1.84 billion, accounting for 31.6% of the total capital.
Of the RoK investment, US$501 million was invested by LG Innotek Co in a project in the northern port city of Hai Phong.
The southern largest economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City continued to be the largest recipient of FDI during the period with US$1.7 billion, while the northern port city of Hai Phong received US$925 million to take the second place.
The third largest recipient of FDI was the southern province of Binh Duong with investment worth US$565 million.
To fully capitalise on the FDI capital source in the new stage, the MoPI is drafting a FDI strategy for 2018-2023. With assistance from the World Bank, the FDI strategy underlines that Vietnam at this stage should focus on sectors having advantages and those that foreign firms could bring more benefits to rather than domestic firms.
The draft strategy stipulates Vietnam to set out priority sectors for attracting FDI, such as those that need increased value and competitiveness, including manufacturing, services, agriculture and travel.
