HCMC – Singapore poured US$978.4 million into Vietnam in the first two months of this year, making it the biggest investor among 51 countries and territories investing in Vietnam, according to the Ministry of Planning and Development.

Singapore made up 31.6% of total foreign direct investment (FDI) approvals in Vietnam in January and February.

As of February 20, new FDI approvals in Vietnam, including newly-registered capital, adjusted capital and share purchases, totaled nearly US$3.1 billion, down 38% year-on-year.

Taiwan came second with total pledged capital of US$407 million in Vietnam, accounting for 13.1% of the total, and up nearly four times year-on-year.

The Netherlands ranked third with US$369 million, accounting for over 11.9% of the total investment capital, followed by China, South Korea and Sweden.

China took the lead in the number of new investment projects in Vietnam, accounting for nearly 17.2%. South Korea ranked first in terms of capital adjustment (21.1%) as well as capital contributions and share purchases (30.5%).

Foreign businesses invested in 39 provinces and cities nationwide between January and February. Among those, the northern province of Bac Giang led the localities in FDI attraction with US$824.3 million, making up 26.6% of the total, up 8.4 times over the same period in 2022.

HCMC came second with 103 new projects worth US$369.1 million, accounting for nearly 12% of the total, followed by Binh Duong, Quang Ninh and Dong Nai.

Economic experts said that Vietnam needs to improve efficiency in investment promotion activities, as well as develop suitable investment policies to attract large FDI projects in the coming time.