Foreign investment tops US$31 bil.

Vietnam attracted some US$31.2 billion in foreign investment in 2021, up 9.2% year-on-year.

According to the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment, 1,738 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects with total registered capital of over US$15.2 billion were licensed last year, up 4.1% in the total capital year-on-year but down 31% in the number of projects. Meanwhile, 985 operational FDI projects increased their investment by a total of over US$9 billion, down 13.6% in the number of projects but soaring by 40.5% in capital. Besides, foreign investors conducted some 3,800 transactions to contribute funds and acquire shares in local firms with total capital of some US$6.9 billion, falling 38.2% and 7.7% year-on-year, respectively. The agency attributed the decrease in the number of projects to Vietnam’s selective investment attraction policy that limits small-scale projects and those with a low added value. It said that entry restrictions and requirements for prolonged quarantine during the Covid-19 pandemic also hindered foreign experts and project development teams from entering Vietnam, leading to a drop in new FDI. Disbursed FDI capital was US$19.74 billion, down 1.2% from 2020.

As many as 106 countries and territories invested in Vietnam in 2021. Singapore was the biggest investor with over US$10 billion, followed by South Korea with some US$5 billion and Japan with nearly US$3.9 billion.

Haiphong City was the largest FDI attraction with US$5.3 billion, followed by Long An Province with US$3.8 billion and HCMC with US$3.7 billion.