Investment outflow of Vietnamese businesses into foreign countries and territories is expected to increase with a yearly average of US$500 million, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI)’s Foreign Investment Agency.

Last year saw a wave of Vietnamese foreign investment. Deputy head of the department, Bui Quoc Trung, said Vietnam invested in 457 projects worth US$7.2 billion in over 50 countries and territories. The figures reached 143% of the set targets and were over twice as much as the total investment between 1989 and 2008.

Agriculture ranked first, accounting for 40% of the total projects and 68% of total investment. The service sector followed with 19% of the projects and over US$2 billion disbursed last year.

Many projects were in high-tech sectors and were distributed worldwide.

This year, traditional markets including Laos, Cambodia, Russia, Malaysia and Algeria will still be attractive destinations for Vietnam’s investors. However, businesses will also expand their markets in Japan, the US, the Republic of Korea and Singapore who have been big investors in Vietnam .

According to Minister of Planning and Investment Vo Hong Phuc, the country’s trade turnover reach US$125 billion despite the global economic downturn. Of these markets, Vietnamese investors were particularly successful in Laos and Cambodia. Projects in the two countries increased both in quantity and capital with an average investment of US$14.2 million per project.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, at a conference in Ho Chi Minh City on December 26, 2009, said Vietnam now had over 60 projects in Cambodia with a total capital of nearly US$900 million, making Vietnam among the top three foreign investors in Cambodia.

Laos has also been a promising market for Vietnamese investors due to its potential in gold exploration and processing as well as other minerals.

The US$1 billion project to build a golf course and a five-star hotel in Laos by Long Thanh Golf Investment and Trade Joint Stock Company has been Vietnam ’s biggest foreign investment project so far.

The country also attracted Vietnamese investors in the agro-forestry and processing industry with seven projects worth more than US$140 million in total.

According to former head of the Foreign Investment Agency, Phan Huu Thang, the rapid growth of Vietnam’s investment outflow is an encouraging trend which is suitable with its development and international integration.

The MPI continues to complete legal framework and policies for investment, thus creating favourable conditions for Vietnamese businesses. (VNA)