Speaking at a July 3 meeting with representatives from 15 leading transnational companies, the PM said the government has recently enacted new investment laws and regulations as part of a continuing effort to improve its business climate.
“We are on a mission to make the nation more conducive to foreign investment,” PM Dung told the group of business leaders from such companies as Tokyo-Mitsubishi Bank, Canon, Mitsubishi, Sumitomo, Hitachi and Bridgestone.
 |
The measures are part of wider reforms intended to diversify the economy and better comply with international standards and are specifically aimed at reducing red tape and bureaucratic foot-dragging.
Reforms include removing some existing provisions to ease business applications and reducing periods for dealing with investment requests.
“The nation has entered a new revival period— the economy is stable, GDP grew at a healthy 6.28% for the first half of the year and inflation is under control, Dung underscored.
Most significantly, the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) is set to officially come into existence by the end of the year, which will provide a tremendous boost for the nation’s untapped economic potential.
 |
The Vietnam-Japan Strategic Partnership has continued not only to evolve positively but flourish Dung said, adding that Japan is the nation’s largest provider of ODA funds, which have amounted to US$27 billion over the past two decades.
Japan is also the third largest trading partner of Vietnam with the bilateral trade volume striking nearly US$30 billion last year and it is the leading foreign investor with US$38 billion of investment.
At the meeting, PM Dung and Vietnamese ministers answered investors’ queries and responded to their suggestions related to items such as the support industry, vocational training, the automobile industry, energy, infrastructure, tax, custom, real estate and ODA.
Business leaders in attendance at the event applauded the government’s effort and determination to improve the business environment and most said they planned to expand their business activities in Vietnam.
 |
On the same day, PM Dung also held separate meetings with leaders from Nikkei, Mitsui Sumitomo and Mitsubishi.