Disbursement of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Vietnam could rise 10 percent to between $10 billion and $11 billion this year, thanks to the global economic recovery, a government minister was quoted as saying.
"Disbursed capital in 2010 will be higher than in 2009 as the flows of pledges in previous years are high and the world's economy tends to recover," Planning and Investment Minister Vo Hong Phuc said, according to a report in Thursday's Vietnam Financial Times, which is run by the Finance Ministry.
Phuc said FDI pledges in 2010 were also expected to rise by around 10 percent to between $22 billion and $25 billion. The comparisons were based on actual figures on pledges and disbursements in 2009, he said, without providing further details. In December Phuc's ministry released FDI estimates for the full year showing pledges slumping to $21.5 billion from $66.5 billion the previous year and disbursements easing to $10 billion from $11.5 billion.
Foreign investment inflows, along with overseas remittances, are a key source of foreign exchange helping Vietnam offset its trade deficit. FDI pledges regularly outstrip inflows. Last month foreign investors disbursed $400 million in Vietnam, a third more than the same month last year, a state-run newspaper reported, quoting Planning and Investment Ministry figures. The ministry oversees foreign investment in Vietnam.