FDI restructuring is in the works to guarantee quality

According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment's Foreign Investment Agency, Vietnam counted total FDI inflows of about $18.7 billion in the first eight months of the year, equivalent to 84.7 per cent of the previous year's total.

Of this, $7.12 billion was poured into 1,355 newly-licensed projects, up 11.8 per cent on the number of projects last year but a sharp reduction of 43 per cent in value.

Another $8.3 billion was added to 769 projects currently underway, a rise of 29.9 per cent in value and 13.4 per cent in quantity. Overseas investors also poured almost $3.3 billion into around 2,700 share purchase deals, a slight increase of 1.9 per cent over the same period last year.

FDI disbursement climbed well by 16.2 per cent on-year, to around $15.4 billion.

Among the 18 sectors receiving funds in the first nine months, processing and manufacturing took the lead with more than $12.1 billion, accounting for 64.6 per cent of total FDI. This was followed by real estate ($3.5 billion), science, technology, and professional activities ($677 million), and retail and wholesales ($618 million).

Singapore led the 97 countries and territories investing in Vietnam in the first nine months with a total investment capital of around $4.75 billion, followed by South Korea ($3.8 billion), and Japan ($1.9 billion).

Ho Chi Minh City attracted the highest amount of FDI in these nine months with just under $3 billion, followed by Binh Duong with $2.7 billion, and Bac Ninh with $1.8 billion.

The export turnover of foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs) continued increasing by 18.4 per cent on-year to about $210.8 billion (including crude oil), or $209.1 billion (excluding crude oil), making up about 74 per cent of the country's total export value.

Their import turnover was estimated at around $181.8 billion, up 13.8 per cent and accounting for 65.2 per cent of the total.

FIEs' trade surplus was $29 billion (including crude oil), or $27.3 billion (excluding crude oil), in the first nine months, while local businesses reported a trade deficit of $23.3 billion.

The almost 35,800 valid foreign-invested projects were accumulated across the country with the total registered capital of more than $431.5 billion. Their disbursement was about $267 billion, equivalent to 61.9 per cent of the valid registered capital.