The actual volume of US foreign direct investment (FDI) in Vietnam may be double the declared volume, the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) wrote in a specific report to the Government.
According to MPI statistics, by the end of November 2006, the US had invested in 305 projects in Vietnam with the total investment capital of $2.112bil, $730mil of which had been disbursed.
With the figures, the US just ranks ninth among 75 nations and territories that have FDI in Vietnam. The figures show no increase in US FDI in Vietnam since the US – Vietnam Bilateral Agreement came into implementation in 2001, and is in fact far below the expected volume.
However, MPI officials said that it was necessary to take a more comprehensive view of US FDI in Vietnam in order to know the real situation of investment.
In fact, many US big groups have been making heavy investment in Vietnam like Coca Cola, Procter & Gamble, Unocal and Conoco; however, their investment is not considered investment from the US. These groups have been making investments through subsidiaries located in third countries, predominantly Hong Kong, Singapore and the British Virgin Islands.
According to MPI, some 74 US-sourced investment projects have been implemented through such channels, totalling $2.4bil.
As such, if counting US-invested projects carried out through third countries, total US FDI capital in Vietnam may reach $4.4bil, ranking 5th among the 75 countries and territories that have FDI in Vietnam.
US investment projects are mainly in the fields of industries and construction. These have the investment capital of $1.07bil. The service sector has also been attractive to US investors – welcoming $791mil worth of investment. US investors prefer making investment under the form of 100% foreign owned entities, while BCCs (business cooperation contracts) and joint ventures just account for a small proportion of the total investment.
Source: Viet Nam Bridge
