When Vietnam is the destination of foreign investors

Many large corporations have large-scale projects and are committed to continuing to invest in Vietnam. Photo: Le Toan

Waiting for "opportunities ahead"

Two consecutive American business delegations, with more than 60 big names, from Boeing, Apple, Intel, Coca-Cola to Nike, Amazon, Bell Textron, Excelerate Energy... have come to Vietnam in recent days. This is an annual activity organized by the US-ASEAN Business Council (USABC), but this time it is the largest business delegation ever.

Ted Osius, President and CEO of USABC, happily spoke about it, saying that the number reflects the “strong confidence” of American businesses in Vietnam’s future. “Vietnam is the fastest growing economy in Southeast Asia, attracting record levels of foreign direct investment and expanding its global trade footprint,” said Mr. Ted Osius.

He also emphasized Vietnam's recent important reforms, especially in streamlining the apparatus, as well as in reducing barriers to import and export activities, thereby creating a more attractive environment for investment and business activities. "The US business community is looking forward to the positive impacts of these changes and exploiting the opportunities ahead," said Mr. Ted Osius.

This is not the first time the story of “opportunities ahead” has been mentioned. Even when the semiconductor race is “hot”, many investors, not only from the US, have considered Vietnam as a “destination”. Many large corporations such as Intel, Amkor, Ampere, Marvell, Sysnopsys… all have large-scale projects and are committed to continue investing in Vietnam.

In addition to the above fields, major investors in the fields of aviation, logistics, finance, telecommunications, health care, agriculture ... were also present in Vietnam on this occasion. Meta and Bayer are typical examples.

The same goes for many other large American corporations. It is reported that the Trump Organization is looking to speed up the implementation of its $1.5 billion resort and golf course project in Hung Yen .

“We are looking forward to accelerating the project to complete it within the next two years, in March 2027, to serve the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) 2027 Summit. This will be an important event, not only for Vietnam, but also for the region and the world, thereby enhancing the image of Vietnam on the global tourism and sports map,” said Mr. Charles James Boyd Bowman, General Director of the Trump Organization project in Vietnam, in a meeting with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh a few days ago.

And not only the above project, according to Mr. Charles James Boyd Bowman, Trump Organization is also researching investment opportunities in other fields in Vietnam.

Meanwhile, Pacifico Energy (PE) Group wishes to develop offshore wind power projects in Vietnam, with the aim of providing clean energy, helping Vietnam achieve its double-digit growth target in the coming time. Meeting with General Secretary To Lam in mid-March 2025, Mr. Nate Franklin, Founder and Chairman of Pacifico Energy (PE) Group, said so.

Another noteworthy information is that American businesses are also interested in the plan to develop two regional and international financial centers in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang, Vietnam.

There are many concerns and that is the “opportunity ahead” for both American and Vietnamese businesses.

To make Vietnam the destination

American business delegations, especially the USABC delegation, are not coming to Vietnam for the first time. And next year’s delegation will likely be larger in number than the previous year’s. Confirmations about investment are constantly being made. However, what the public is waiting for are the commitments to be realized.

Last year, the total investment capital invested by American businesses in Vietnam was just over 287 million USD. In the first two months of this year, the figure was nearly 10 million USD.

Vietnam is the fastest-growing economy in Southeast Asia, attracting record levels of foreign direct investment and expanding its global trade footprint.

- Mr. Ted Osius, President and CEO of the US-ASEAN Business Council (USABC)

In fact, a significant portion of US investors’ investments are made through third countries. For example, the Amkor Project increased its capital by $1.07 billion in the middle of last year, 11 years earlier than originally planned, and was registered for investment not through a US legal entity. However, it is clear that the acceleration of US investment has not been as expected. The numbers are still not as expected.

The question is, how to make Vietnam a destination, not only for American businesses, but for other foreign investors in general.

In discussions with the Vietnamese Government and authorities, American businesses always expressed their desire for Vietnam to continue reforming administrative procedures and shortening decision-making time. This, in fact, has been an effort Vietnam has made over the past time.

Receiving the USABC business delegation, Minister of Finance Nguyen Van Thang pledged to always accompany, support, and create favorable conditions for American businesses and investors to continue investing and doing business in Vietnam. The Minister also clarified investors' concerns regarding special consumption tax, or tax incentives for businesses using recycled materials, as well as investment incentives in the fields of high technology, innovation, etc.

Regarding the mechanism and policy for building two financial centers in Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City, Minister Nguyen Van Thang said that Vietnam is researching and building mechanisms and policies in the direction of "the most preferential and innovative possible" for foreign investors, investment funds, financial funds and enterprises to participate.

Moreover, after listening to the opinions of the US business delegation, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh expressed his hope that investors would continue to advise and provide policy advice to the Vietnamese Government. When institutions and policies are completed, Vietnam will truly become a safe and attractive destination for global investors, including US investors.

When Vietnam is the destination, the Vietnamese economy will be given more growth momentum. Recently, one of the important solutions emphasized by the Government to bring the economy to a growth rate of 8% or more this year, aiming for double-digit growth in the coming time, has always been to promote foreign investment attraction, especially large projects in the fields of high technology, semiconductors, AI, etc. These are the new growth drivers of Vietnam, which can contribute to accelerating and breaking through the economy.