According to the General Statistics Office of Vietnam, realised FDI in Vietnam in January rose 11.3 per cent year on year, reflecting continued improvements in the country’s investment climate and the faster implementation of foreign backed projects.
An aerial view of Hanoi City (Photo: Vu Tuan Anh).
Manufacturing dominates capital flows
Of the USD 1.68 billion disbursed, the processing and manufacturing sector accounted for USD 1.39 billion, representing 82.5 per cent of total realised FDI.
Real estate activities attracted USD 110.2 million, equivalent to 6.6 per cent, while electricity, gas, hot water, steam and air conditioning production and distribution drew USD 66.6 million, or 4 per cent.
The strong increase in disbursement indicates that foreign investors are moving ahead with operational deployment despite fluctuations in newly registered capital.
Registered FDI declines despite more new projects
Total registered FDI, including newly licensed projects, capital adjustments and share purchases, reached USD 2.58 billion as of January 31, down 40.6 per cent compared with the same period last year.
However, newly registered investment showed positive momentum. Vietnam licensed 349 new projects worth USD 1.49 billion, up 23.8 per cent in project numbers and 15.7 per cent in registered capital year on year.
Manufacturing again led new registrations with USD 1.05 billion, accounting for 70.8 per cent of newly pledged capital. Real estate followed with USD 243.2 million, or 16.3 per cent, while other sectors combined made up the remaining 12.9 per cent.
Singapore leads foreign investors
Among 35 countries and territories with newly licensed projects in January, Singapore was the largest investor, committing USD 906.1 million, or 60.9 per cent of total new registered capital.
It was followed by China with USD 169.6 million (11.4 per cent), Japan with USD 140.8 million (9.5 per cent), the United States with USD 85.5 million (5.7 per cent), Hong Kong with USD 66.1 million (4.4 per cent), South Korea with USD 48.3 million (3.2 per cent) and the Netherlands with USD 32.3 million (2.2 per cent).
Capital adjustments and share purchases fall
Additional capital registered for 91 existing projects totalled USD 888.5 million, down 67.4 per cent year on year.
Meanwhile, foreign investors conducted 265 share purchase and capital contribution transactions worth USD 198.4 million, a decline of 38.6 per cent. Of that amount, USD 67 million increased charter capital in enterprises, while USD 131.4 million involved acquisitions that did not raise charter capital.
In these transactions, manufacturing continued to attract the largest share at USD 81.2 million, or 40.9 per cent, followed by professional, scientific and technological activities with USD 45.7 million, or 23.1 per cent. Other sectors accounted for the remaining 36 per cent.
Overall, the data underscores manufacturing’s central role as the key engine drawing foreign investment into Vietnam, even as total newly registered capital shows short term volatility.