US-Vietnam status to be further reinforced

This week, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, State President To Lam, along with a high-level Vietnamese delegation, will attend the United Nations Summit of the Future and the 79th session of the UN General Assembly, and hold working sessions in the United States.

Billions of US dollars are being poured into design facilities in Vietnam

The working trip will mark a new milestone in the two countries’ cooperation, with both sides pledging to further solidify economic, trade, and investment ties according to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership forged in September 2023 during the historic state visit to Vietnam by US President Joe Biden.

At present, Vietnam and the United States are materialising the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with specific initiatives, with growing interest from US investors in Southeast Asia.

“In elevating their partnership, the United States and Vietnam reaffirm a shared commitment to regional prosperity through improved economic cooperation. In partnership with Vietnam, the US will drive new investments through the Partnership for Global Infrastructure by strategically deploying more public capital to better mobilise financing and expertise from the private sector to scale these investments for the years to come,” said the US Embassy to Vietnam.

The US has committed to helping Vietnam develop its own semiconductor industry and strengthen semiconductor supply chains with the participation of several big US companies. Both sides have also placed focus on new cooperation sectors including energy transition, sci-tech, innovation, technology transfer, and workforce training for Vietnam to develop a semiconductor ecosystem.

The United States will support Vietnam in workforce development initiatives for the semiconductor industry, which is considered a major breakthrough in the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Vietnam is now accelerating the deployment of a programme on training 50,000-100,000 high-quality engineers for the industry.

Just over a week ago, Vietnam’s semiconductor industry received a strategic boost after the US-supported Policy and Supply Chain Leadership Institute was launched in Hanoi to help enhance the country’s semiconductor capabilities.

The institute, which is a collaboration between Vietnam’s Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) and the US Department of State, aims to develop a strong semiconductor workforce in Vietnam and contribute to formulating policies to woo investment and innovation to the sector. The institute aims to train 120 university staff and 4,000 students in Vietnam on different stages of the semiconductor supply chain to US standards by 2025.

“The United States is proud to invest in Vietnam’s future through workforce development programmes that create lasting partnership. Together, we are building institutional ties that will shape the semiconductor industry for years to come,” said US Ambassador to Vietnam Marc Knapper.

Last October, Arizona-based Amkor Technology announced the commencement of operations at its $1.6 billion state-of-the art factory in the northern province of Bac Ninh. California-based Synopsys has also launched a semiconductor design and incubation centre in collaboration with Saigon High-Tech Park. Elsewhere, California-based Marvell also announced that it would establish a world-class semiconductor design centre in Ho Chi Minh City.

According to German data provider Statista, revenue from Vietnam’s semiconductor market is forecast to hit $20.15 billion this year and post a compound annual growth rate of 11.62 per cent in 2023-2027, for a market volume of $31.28 billion by 2027. The largest market within the semiconductor industry is integrated circuits, with a projected market value of $16.44 billion this year.

Statistics from the MPI showed that cumulatively as of August 31, the United States was Vietnam’s 11th largest foreign investor with total registered capital of over $11.94 billion for nearly 1,400 valid ventures.

In the first eight months of this year, total newly registered and newly added capital and stake acquisition and capital contributions from US investors in Vietnam hit $135.8 million, up 27.5 per cent on-year.

“US big companies are showing their continued interest in investment in the Vietnamese market. They demonstrate their wish to boost cooperation with Vietnamese partners in many sectors such as infrastructure development, supply chain, energy transition and digital transformation, high-tech investment, and innovation,” said Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

According to the ministry, many major groups from the United States have and will continue their investment plans, both newly investment and funding expansion. For example, P&G is expected to invest an additional $100 million into expanding its production line at Ben Cat factory, while AES is expected to invest in renewable energy development.

Meanwhile, currently Vietnam has 230 valid projects in the US, with total registered capital of $1.26 billion.

Vietnam looking for innovation cooperation opportunities in the United States Vietnamese Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung held meetings with members of the Vietnam Innovation Network and technology giants in Silicon Valley (San Francisco) during a business trip to the United States during June 22-26.

Comprehensive partnership pushes US trade prospects As the United States prepares to celebrate 248 years of independence, US Ambassador to Vietnam Marc E. Knapper finds similar cause to celebrate the upcoming first anniversary of its Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with Vietnam.

Vietnam well-positioned for US groups Interest from the United States is riding high after trade ties were advanced just under a year ago. Winnie Wong, vice chairwoman of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ho Chi Minh City, spoke with VIR’s Bich Ngoc about the recent wave of US investment into Vietnam.