Forbes: Vietnam attracts US investment
Forbes: Vietnam attracts US investment
10:58' 01/11/2006 (GMT+7)
VietNamNet Bridge - US’s Forbes Magazine on October 30 posted an article entitled “A New Ho Chi Minh Trail” by Tim Kelly, stressing Vietnam’s advantages in attracting FDI from the US.
Vietnam lures US investment because it's cheap, it has lots of people, the article says.
In addition, by tapping the disquiet among Western and Asian businesses, Vietnam has pulled numerous prospects its way.
After a mid-1990s boom that flattened out, Vietnam is hot once again. The country is expecting US $6.5 billion in foreign direct investment this year, up from US $5.8 billion last year and only US $1.2 billion in 2002. And it's on the verge of far greater growth. Vietnam is close to joining the World Trade Organisation, and Congress seems ready to permanently normalize trade relations with the country. In November President Bush heads to Hanoi for the annual summit of Asia-Pacific leaders.
Vietnam's population of 83 million is growing by a million folks a year, and economic growth that exceeds 8% a year is quickly making them wealthier. On the streets of Ho Chi Minh, street vendors wearing conical hats now rub shoulders with fashion-conscious youths armed with Samsung and Motorola cell phones. The rapid pace of change is grabbing the attention of consumer-products makers eager to reach the masses and the two-thirds of the population under 30. Procter & Gamble operates a 500-worker factory making laundry detergent, shampoo and diapers for the Vietnam market, while a Ford Motor plant run by a Vietnamese outfit can pump out 14,000 vehicles a year. Intel is spending $300 million to build a chip plant.
A boom in retail and food outlets is likely next. Wal-Mart, the world's biggest retailer, is mulling store openings, according to the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce & Industry.
Individual investors also are making bets on Vietnam. Foreigners may own up to 49% of a company's stock; in October they accounted for a quarter of the value of transactions on the Vietnam Stock Exchange. Hanoi has equitised 2,000 businesses and expects to sell another 2,000 by the end of 2008.
(Source: Forbes)