Vietnam is anticipated to emerge as a destination for Chinese enterprises in the near future, as investments from the neighbouring country have become increasingly diverse in areas such as energy, green development, and digital economy, according to experts.

Accelerating investment in Vietnam

This year, many Chinese enterprises, especially those with the ability to participate deeply in the global supply chain, have made investment surveys in northern provinces of Vietnam.

For example, Wingtech, China's largest smartphone assembly company, pledged to continue surveying investment opportunities in Phu Tho province. Goertek poured 280 million USD into a new project while expanding an existing one in Bac Ninh province. Another firm, China’s largest EV company BYD, invested 269 million USD in an automobile component manufacturing project in Phu Tho province.

Baodautu.vn cited Do Van Su, Deputy Director of the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), as saying that China has been one of the largest foreign investors in Vietnam over the past five years. 

In the first 11 months of 2023, China pumped 3.96 billion USD in Vietnam, ranking fourth among countries and territories investing in the country. To date, Chinese investors have injected over 27 billion USD in 4,161 projects across Vietnam, placing 6th out of 143 countries and territories investing in the country.

According to the MPI, investment capital flows from China to Vietnam have changed significantly in recent years in a variety of areas. In addition to restaurants, hotels, and consumer goods, Chinese investors have expanded into electricity, electronics, tire production, textiles, and footwear. This has made an important contribution to developing the country's supporting industries.

Most notably, in October, the northern province of Quang Ninh granted an investment registration certificate to the Jinko Solar Hai Ha Vietnam photovoltaic cell project capitalised at 1.5 billion USD. The main investor for the project is Jinko Solar Holding, the world's largest and most advanced solar panel manufacturing corporation from China.

John Campbell, Associate Director and head of the Industrial Services Department at Savills Vietnam, outlined Vietnam's geographic location (adjacent to China), creating favourable conditions for the transportation of goods, raw materials and production lines as one of the major reasons why Vietnam attracted Chinese businesses. 

In addition, Vietnam's high level of economic integration has also helped Chinese businesses expand their presence in the market, he told baodautu.vn, adding that Vietnam also possesses an abundant labour force, including a highly skilled workforce, with competitive labour costs.

Waiting for large projects

Chairman of the Vietnam Association of Foreign Invested Enterprises Nguyen Mai said besides Vietnam, Chinese investors have also been investing in many countries around the world, in which large economies such as the US or the EU wanted to attract this investment inflow.

However, with the potential for economic and investment cooperation, there would be many more large investment projects from China into Vietnam, Mai said. 

From now until 2025 or beyond, Vietnam would become a destination for Chinese investors, Mai said, adding that the investors could not miss investment opportunities in Vietnam to take advantage of potential export partners to trade goods. 

At a meeting with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh in June, leaders of Chinese giants such as Hong Tian Zhu, Texhong, Song Hailiang, Energy China, Jiang Bin and Goertek praised Vietnam's dynamic development, and expressed their desire to expand production and business in Vietnam.

Leaders of these businesses said they wanted to expand investment in Vietnam in a number of fields such as energy, industrial park infrastructure, social housing, inland waterway ports, automobile manufacturing, research and development, supply chain development./.