Japanese investors are pouring more capital into the southern province of Binh Duong to tap into local potential in electronic component manufacturing, automobile assembly and production, and supporting industries.

Hideyuki Okada, head of the Japanese Business Association in Ho Chi Minh City, said Japanese investment into Vietnam has been soaring for the past many years. More and more Japanese firms are making new investments and expanding existing projects in the country amid the relocation of their production facilities from China to Southeast Asia.

According to him, the abundant workforce, political stability and the large consumption market are factors attracting Japanese investors to Vietnam, the focus of attention from Japanese firms to ASEAN at present.

He took Binh Duong as an example, noting that Japan now tops the 64 countries and territories investing here with 304 projects worth 5.65 billion USD, accounting for 16.2 percent of the total FDI capital in the province.

Most of Japanese investors here operate in electronic component manufacturing, automobile assembly and production, and supporting industries. Many of them have also invested in infrastructure, urban development, and trade in services.

The Sharp Manufacturing Vietnam Co. Ltd recently invested in a factory worth 135 million USD in the Vietnam – Singapore II-A Industrial Park. Work on the project, which will produce air purifiers, liquid-crystal displays and electronic devices, is scheduled to begin next year.

On October 10, Panasonic Life Solutions Vietnam started the construction of its second factory in Binh Duong. The project, invested with over 45 million USD, will manufacture ceiling fans and air ventilators.

Additionally, Nitto Denko Vietnam Co. Ltd has also poured 186.2 million USD in an integrated circuit production project in the province.

Hideyuki Okada said more Japanese manufacturers in supporting industries will come to invest in Binh Duong. Therefore, his country’s investment capital here is likely to continue growing in the time ahead.

That also requests the southern industrial hub of Vietnam to develop new industrial parks or expand existing ones to meet businesses’ production demand, he added.

At the recent dialogue with Japanese businesses, Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Tran Thanh Liem said Binh Duong will harness resources to perfect socio-economic infrastructure, expand industrial parks, ready land for investment projects, promote human resources training, build more housing for workers, and better supply labourers for investors.