As of November 20, there had been 980 new foreign direct investment (FDI) projects licensed nationwide with total registered capital of US$7.25 billion, down nearly 40% year-on-year.
As of November 20, there had been 980 new foreign direct investment (FDI) projects licensed nationwide with total registered capital of US$7.25 billion, down nearly 40% year-on-year.
In this period, 406 operational FDI projects raised their capital by US$4.92 billion, a rise of 41.3% over the same period last year. However, this did not help push up the total newly-registered and additional FDI.
In the first 11 months of 2012, the total fresh and additional FDI amounted to US$12.18 billion, only equal to 78.6% of the year-ago figure, says the latest report on FDI attraction of the Foreign Investment Agency (FIA) under the Ministry of Planning and Investment.
Processing-manufacturing still took the lead in attracting foreign investors, luring 431 fresh FDI projects and total newly-registered and additional capital of US$8.5 billion, or 69.8% of the total FDI inflow into the country.
Despite the frozen real estate market, FDI inflow into this sector ranked second with nine new projects and fresh and additional capital at US$1.84 billion, accounting for 15% of the total FDI inflow.
Wholesale, retail and automobile repair attracted 169 new FDI projects with total capital, both fresh and additional, of US$465.6 million, taking the third place in terms of FDI attraction. Information and communications occupied the fourth place with total newly-registered and additional FDI funds of US$403.4 million.
In the year to date, Japan has always been the biggest foreign investor among 56 nations and territories with investment in Vietnam, with total newly-pledged and additional capital of US$5.05 billion, or 41.5% of the total in the first 11 months.
Singapore came second with US$1.55 billion in fresh and additional FDI capital, followed by South Korea and Samoa with US$1.08 billion and US$899.8 million respectively.
Still, according to FIA, Vietnam has achieved certain positive results in FDI attraction. Notably, disbursement of the foreign-invested sector increased sharply, with some US$10 billion disbursed in the first 11 months, equal to 99.5% of the year-ago figure, a very good result in the context of economic woes.
The foreign-invested sector’s exports, including oil and gas, are estimated at US$65.61 billion in the first 11 months of the year, up 31.8% year-on-year, accounting for over 63% of the total export turnover of the country.
Meanwhile, businesses in this sector imported some US$54.96 billion worth of products, picking up 24.3% over the same period last year and standing at 52.85% of the nation’s total import turnover.
Overall, in the first 11 months of 2012, the foreign-invested sector recorded a trade surplus of US$10.65 billion.
So far, Binh Duong has lured the most FDI, US$2.28 billion, accounting for 18.8% of the total fresh and additional FDI capital. HCMC ranked second with US$1.14 billion, 9.4%, and Dong Nai took the third place with US$1.11 billion, followed by Hai Phong, Bac Ninh and Hanoi.
(Source:VNN)
