FDI operations blossom on large scale

There is a high-tech slant to many new schemes being implemented or planned in Vietnam, Photo Le Toan

Hai Duong People’s Committee last week approved some notable manufacturing ventures. The first involves the manufacturing of toys, stationery, and household electrical appliances by Hong Kong-based Korninghill Group with an investment of $3 million, while Jia Ri Xing, also from Hong Kong, will create walkie-talkies and plastic products at a $4 million facility.

The committee has also just delivered investment licences to the $2 million metal and plastic product venture from Jiaxu Development Industrial; and Qizhen Industrial’s $4 million project involving plastic household items and electronic products.

The companies have yet to reveal when operations of these ventures will begin.

In early January, Hai Duong had already approved large-scale projects worth a total value of $1.5 billion. These include a $270-million stationery manufacturing factory from Deli Vietnam Office Technology, a $260-million factory from Biel Crystal Technology Manufacturing, and a $120-million solar photovoltaic panel factory involving Boviet Hai Duong Solar Technology.

The moves point to Hai Duong having a successful year in foreign direct investment (FDI) mobilisation, which was more than $1.2 billion in 2023. Despite ranking 11th among localities last year in this regard, it is still deemed remarkable progress as compared to 2022, with $370 million of FDI inflows and a rank of 17th.

Also in February, Thai Binh province in the north announced that a factory for Good Way Vietnam, from Taiwan, started construction at Lien Ha Thai Industrial Park to produce connection devices and external computer equipment. The initiative is set to cost around $45 million.

Although it used to be a modest locality in attracting FDI, at around $307 million in 2022, Thai Binh is quickly becoming a destination for more investors. Last year, the province attracted nearly $2.8 billion, jumping to fifth place among top localities in terms of FDI mobilisation localities.

In October 2023, HiteJinro Group from South Korea announced investment in a beverage factory in Lien Ha Thai Industrial Park worth $100 million. Thai Binh People’s Committee also approved other investors to join the park, including Pegavision Vietnam from Taiwan and China’s Longstar Lighting Thai Binh, with a total investment of $225 million.

Similarly, in 2023, the central province of Nghe An made a breakthrough with more than $1.6 billion of FDI inflows, ranking eighth.

Nguyen Duc Trung, Chairman of Nghe An People’s Committee, noted that the province is home to major projects involving the likes of Foxconn, Luxshare, and Goertek.

“Funding promotions are being carried out drastically to enable the province to be in the top 10 leading localities in FDI mobilisation this year,” Trung said. “We have been implementing several measures to attract funding, including readiness for planning, basic infrastructure, human resources, and readiness to improve administrative procedures and the general investment environment.”

According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), more than $2.36 billion was registered in Vietnam in January this year, an increase of 40.2 per cent on-year. The disbursement amount was $1.48 billion, up 9.6 per cent on-year.

“This is a good outcome, confirming the attraction of Vietnam in overall FDI picture, and it will continue to brighten,” said Do Nhat Hoang, director general of the Foreign Investment Agency under the MPI.

Hoang added that FDI disbursement this year could be a record $23.5 billion, up 1.3 per cent compared to 2023, while registered FDI in 2024 is expected at $36-37 billion, equivalent to last year.

Despite little growth, the numbers are said to be strong in the context that global FDI is decreasing in numerous regions and countries like the EU, United States, and some developing markets. Of these, China has reported a sharp decrease. FDI into China sat at $33 billion last year, a drop of 80 per cent compared to 2022 and the second consecutive year of decline.

Meanwhile, Vietnam gains some benefits, especially in fields such as semiconductor manufacturing, AI, and high-tech industries.

Vietnam is also slated to benefit from promises by the US to spend $500 million to improve semiconductor manufacturing capacity, cybersecurity, and the global business environment.

FDI performance ends year on a high Vietnam was able to report strong foreign investment attraction results for the whole 2023 on the back of efforts to improve the domestic investment climate.

FDI prospects off to stellar start for 2024 Numerous ventures worth hundreds of millions of USD are pouring into Vietnam, promising positive results in foreign investment mobilisation and contributing to economic growth for 2024.

Quang Ninh attracts additional $332 million in foreign investment capital Quang Ninh Industrial Zones Management Authority granted investment certificates for two projects on February 22, valued at a combined $332 million.