Vietnam's 5-month registered FDI hits $18.4 bln, up 51%

Registered foreign direct investment (FDI) in Vietnam hit $18.4 billion in the first five months of the year, up 51.1%, while disbursed capital reached $8.9 billion, up 7.9%.

According to the Foreign Investment Agency (FIA), the FDI flow into the country continued its growth trajectory amid many global economic turbulences.

"The number of new projects, projects with capital expansion, and transactions for stake acquisitions all increased, showing that foreign investors' confidence in the investment climate continues to be strengthened," the authority stated in a release.

At the FIA's calculations, registered capital comprises capital for newly-registered projects, additional capital for existing projects, and capital for stake acquisitions.

Of the total registered capital, over $7.02 billion (down 13.2% year-on-year) was newly-registered capital for 1,549 projects (up 14.1%).

About $8.51 billion, a 3.4-fold increase compared to the same period last year, was additional capital for 672 existing projects, up 27.8%.

Capital contributions/stake acquisitions reached $2.85 billion (a 1.8-fold rise) with 1,358 deals, up 6.6%.

The processing and manufacturing sector led the pack in terms of the number of newly-registered projects (accounting for 38.6%) and projects with capital expansion (57.8%). The wholesale and retail sector ranked number one in terms of transactions for stake acquisitions (nearly 41.3%).

Registered FDI capital breakdown

Nearly 56.5% of the total registered capital, or over $10.39 billion (up 31.8% year-on-year), came to the manufacturing and processing sector, followed by the real estate sector with 27.1% and $4.99 billion, an over two-fold increase.

Singapore led with $4.38 billion in registered capital (making up 23.8% and up 30.1% year-on-year), followed by South Korea with $2.93 billion (nearly 16% and an over 2.47-fold increase). Next were mainland China, Japan, and Malaysia.

Among localities, Hanoi took the lead with total registered capital of more than $3.2 billion in Jan-May, accounting for 17.6%, nearly 2.8 times higher than the same period.

Notably, the Yen So Park project of Malaysia-backed Gamuda Land Vietnam Co., Ltd. in Hanoi saw an investment capital hike of $1.12 billion, significantly raising the total figure for the capital city.

Bac Ninh ranked second (over $2.7 billion, 14.8% of the total, and more than 2.5 times higher than the same period). Ho Chi Minh City ranked third (over $2.58 billion, 14.1% of the total, and up nearly 2.5 times), followed by Dong Nai and Ba Ria-Vung Tau.

HCMC led the country in terms of newly-registered projects (accounting for 39.1%), projects with capital hikes (making up 23.9%), and capital contributions for stake acquisitions (67.2%).

Registered FDI in Vietnam hit $38.23 billion in 2024, down 3% year-on-year, while disbursed FDI capital reached $25.35 billion, an all-time high.

The country's total direct investment capital overseas in the five-month period reached $317.3 million, over 2.3 times higher than the same period last year.

Laos continued to be the leading destination, making up 46% of the total, followed by Indonesia (18.6%) and the Philippines (10.8%).

As of May 31, 2025, Vietnam had 43,346 valid foreign-invested projects with total registered capital of $517.14 billion.

The accumulated disbursed capital was nearly $331.46 billion, equivalent to nearly 64.6% of the total registered capital of the projects that were licensed and are still valid.