Vietnam's FDI Growth: A Look at 2022's Investment Landscape

A favorable investment environment continues to attract foreign investors, encouraging them to register new investment projects and disburse capital into Vietnam.

This sustained influx of foreign direct investment (FDI) into Vietnam remains positive amid unpredictable fluctuations in the global economy, as noted by various international organizations.

Since the beginning of 2023, a series of transportation infrastructure projects connecting localities and regions have commenced. This development serves as a crucial factor in enticing investors. Large corporations, when selecting a location for a manufacturing plant, prioritize regions with robust infrastructure.

Industries attracting the most FDI to Vietnam in 2022

In 2022, Vietnam received a total FDI capital of nearly 27.72 billion USD. The realized FDI capital reached a record high of 22.4 billion USD, marking a 13.5% increase from the previous year. This figure represents the highest amount of realized FDI capital in the past five years (2017-2022). Cumulatively, from 1986 to 2022, Vietnam attracted almost 438.7 billion USD of FDI capital. Out of this, 274 billion USD has been disbursed, accounting for 62.5% of the total valid registered investment capital.

Notably, the processing and manufacturing industry continued to lead in attracting FDI capital, with a total registered capital of 16.8 billion USD. According to data from the Ministry of Planning and Investment, foreign investors have contributed to 19 out of 21 national economic sectors. The processing and manufacturing industry dominated with an investment capital exceeding 16.8 billion USD, constituting 60.6% of the total registered investment capital. The real estate business followed, securing a total investment capital of more than 4.45 billion USD, accounting for 16.1% of the total registered investment capital. Subsequent sectors included electricity production and distribution, professional science, and technology activities, with registered capitals of more than 2.26 billion USD and nearly 1.29 billion USD, respectively. Various other industries also attracted investments.

New Investment Projects

Several significant projects were initiated with substantial capital, including the Heineken Brewery inaugurated in September 2022 in Vung Tau. With a total investment after capital increase of 9,151 billion VND and a capacity of 1.1 billion liters/year (36 times higher than before), it stands as the largest brewery in Southeast Asia. The brewery boasts the fastest canning line among Heineken breweries worldwide. Additionally, Japan's Quang Ninh LNG Gas Power Plant project was granted a new investment registration certificate, with a total investment capital of nearly 2 billion USD, launched in October 2022.

Throughout 2022, several projects increased their investment capital since the beginning of the year. For instance, there were substantial capital increases for manufacturing electronic and high-tech products. The Samsung Electro-mechanics Vietnam project in Thai Nguyen experienced two capital increments: 920 million USD (1st time) and 267 million USD (2nd time). Similarly, the Samsung HCMC CE Complex Electronics Co., Ltd. project increased its capital to over 841 million USD. Electronic manufacturing factory projects focusing on network equipment and multimedia audio products in Bac Ninh (increased by 306 million USD), Nghe An (increased by 260 million USD), and Hai Phong (increased by 127 million USD) also saw significant growth in investments.

Investment Capital

In 2022, 108 countries and territories invested in Vietnam. Among them, Singapore led with a total investment capital of nearly 6.46 billion USD, followed by Korea with almost 4.88 billion USD, Japan with a total registered investment capital of more than 4.78 billion USD, and China (2.52 billion USD) and Hong Kong (2.22 billion USD).