Total foreign direct investment (FDI) registered capital decreased by 11.1% to fall to US$16.7 billion by July 20 due to the adverse impact caused by the latest COVID-19 outbreak, according to the Foreign Investment Agency (FIA).
This marks the largest decline following the resurgence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in late April.
The FIA reports that 1,006 projects were newly licensed in seven months with total registered capital of US$10.13 billion, up 7% year on year.
There were 561 projects registering to adjust investment capital by an additional US$4.54 billion, down 3.7%, while there were also 2,403 shares purchased by foreign investors worth US$2.05 billion, representing a drop of 46.1%.
The sharp fall in the nation’s FDI attraction is attributable to the impact of the latest COVID-19 outbreak.
The Business Climate Index (BCI) survey released by the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (EuroCham) in mid-July indicates that the confidence of firms has been sharply reduced following the resurgence of the coronavirus.
Despite FDI registered capital enduring a sharp drop, FDI disbursement has recorded a slight annual increase of 3.8% to US$10.5 billion.
Foreign investors have also injected finance into 18 industries, with the processing and manufacturing industry taking the lead with a total investment capital of over US$7.9 billion, followed by electricity generation and distribution with US$5.49 billion, and real estate with US$1.16 billion.
Among the 86 countries and territories pouring their investments into Vietnam, Singapore made up the largest source of registered capital with US$5.92 billion, trailed by Japan with US$2.54 billion, and the Republic of Korea with approximately US$2.2 billion.
Foreign financiers have put capital into 57 provinces and cities across the country. Long An led the localities with a total registered investment capital of US$3.58 billion, followed by Ho Chi Minh City US$1.78 billion, and Binh Duong US$1.33 billion.
Meanwhile, the FDI sector earned US$135.8 billion from exports over seven months, up 28.9% year on year or 73.7% of the country’s total export value. Data also show the sector enjoyed a trade surplus of roughly US$14.9 billion, including crude oil.
