FDI in Vietnam in 2000
Ha Noi, Dec. 30 (VNA) -- Viet Nam has so far this year licensed 303 foreign-invested projects, with a total capital of more than USD 1.9 billion. Besides, enterprises in operation have added USD 268.9 million to their investment capital.
This brings the country's foreign-invested projects to 2,601 with a combined valid capital of USD 35.47 billion.
In 2000, products manufactured by foreign-invested enterprises accounted for 12 percent of the whole country's GDP, 34 percent of industrial output and 22 percent of the export quantity (excluding oil and gas).
Singapore ranked first among 70 countries and territories investing in Viet Nam with a total investment capital of USD 6.8 billion, making up 19 percent of the total registered foreign investment, and followed by Taiwan with a registered capital of USD 4.88 billion. Japan ranked third with a total capital of USD 3.8 billion.
Foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs) have made contributions not only to expanding Viet Nam's outlets abroad and improving its export activities but also accelerating development of domestic markets and other service operations such as tourism, consultancy and technology.
FIEs' export turnover increased 10 percent in 1998, 30 percent in 1999 and 28 percent in 2000 as compared to the 1997 figure (USD 1.79 billion). Their total export turnover for the 1996-2000 period is estimated at more than USD 10.5 billion.
Among the country's ten main export items, those made by FIE's accounted for 42 percent in the production of footwear, 25 percent in textile and garments, and 84 percent in electronic appliances, components and computers.
In particular, FIEs have created new occupations and products, thus contributing to increasing the industrial sector's operations. FIEs made up 100 percent of oil exploitation, the manufacture of automobiles, 250-1,000 KVA transformers, washing machines, refrigerators, air-conditioners, and video cassette players and 50 percent of cloth output, 45 percent of garments and 35 percent of footwear.
Foreign investment has brought to Viet Nam new technologies, especially those in the areas of telecommunications, oil and gas, electronics, informatics and automobile manufacture. Advanced models of management and business have been applied in the country, which have helped domestic enterprises renew their technology, raise their product quality, create sound competition among enterprises and protect the consumers' rights.
Contributions made by foreign-invested enterprises to the Gross Domestic Product have gradually risen from 3.6 percent in 1993 to 10.3 percent in 1999 and about 10.4 percent in 2000.
These enterprises provided jobs for 350,000 full-time workers and about one million part-timers.
To encourage foreign investors and create a healthy investment environment for attracting foreign investment, the State has actively supported enterprises by simplifying procedures in the granting of licenses to export activities. In addition, the Government has established a committee for trade promotion to provide enterprises with information relating to market demand, trademarks and inter-sector specialists' groups to solve difficulties and remove obstacles for foreign-invested enterprises.
The Government will continue issuing policies to better attract foreign investment capital by conducting an experimental equitisation of foreign-invested enterprises and upgrading infrastructural facilities. It will also continue implementing administrative reform, and expanding the training of skilled workers to meet the FIEs' demand.--VNA
