PM Phuc encourages Kansai companies to expand investment in Vietnam

All the companies at the meeting were either looking to start or expand their investments in Vietnam

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Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc made the commitment at the meeting with companies in the prefecture on July 7.

15 Japanese companies, including Daikin, Sakura, Acecook, Kubota, Takako, Asahi, Azusa Sekkei, and Fuji Impulse among others, reported on their business performance in Vietnam while the PM and leaders of government agencies addressed their concerns when seeking to invest or expand investments in Vietnam.

President of The Senshu Ikeda Bank, Ltd., Hirohisa Fujita, said in order to support companies from Kansai and other prefectures in Japan in their Vietnamese investments, they want to open a representative office in Ho Chi Minh City. He said he hoped that the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) and other government agencies would support him in completing the procedures to open the office. PM Phuc said he would assign the SBV to consider Senshu Ikeda’s proposal.

Leaders of Sakura and Takako said they were concerned about the current regulations regarding importing used equipment to Vietnam, as they want to shift their production bases into Vietnam. According to them, even though the equipment is 10 years old, it is still working well.

As assigned by the PM, Minister of Science and Technology Chu Ngoc Anh said that the current regulation on this is more flexible, as in each type of equipment will be evaluated separately, instead of issuing a ruling on the entire batch of equipment. The minister said that he would personally look into this case.

President of Takashimaya Co., Ltd. Shigeru Kimoto said Takashimaya wanted to build an underground arcade in Ben Thanh, Ho Chi Minh City to start operation at the same time as the urban railway. As assigned by PM Phuc, Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh said that this project belongs to a prioritised investment field, namely exploiting the underground transport system.

In his closing speech, PM Phuc said the Vietnamese government will continue to develop infrastructure, train human resources, and make policies to support the growth of the supporting industries, the auto industry, as well as energy, retail, and healthcare.

"Your success in Vietnam is also our success," PM Phuc told the company representatives

He asked that companies from Kansai, members of the Kankeiren Economic Federation, invest more in Vietnam, especially in infrastructure development, energy and renewable energy, finance and banking, tourism and services. He also suggested investing under the PPP form and joining the equitisation of state-owned enterprises.