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Foreign direct investment pledges rose 0.8 percent year-on-year in the first five months to $14 billion, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment.
Of this, 613 newly-registered projects accounted for $8.83 billion.
The investment is directed at 18 sectors, led by the manufacturing and processing as well as the energy sector with over $6 billion and $5.4 billion, respectively.
Singapore was the biggest foreign investor, accounting for 37.6 percent of the FDI pledges, followed by Japan, South Korea, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
While the investments went to 56 cities and provinces, four southern localities topped the fray. The Mekong Delta localities of Long An and Can Tho City attracted $3.35 billion and $1.32 billion, respectively, while commercial hub HCMC accounted for $1.34 billion and Binh Duong got ($1.1 billion).
Disbursed FDI in the first five months was estimated at $7.15 billion, up 6.7 percent year-on-year.
The FDI sector saw a trade surplus of $14.4 billion during the period, the ministry said. Its exports, including crude oil, crossed $98 billion, accounting for 75 percent of the country’s export turnover.
Last year had seen a 25 percent year-on-year fall in FDI investment to $28.5 billion as the Covid-19 pandemic prevented air travel and dampened investor sentiment.
This article was originally published in VNExpress