FDI inflows and disbursement in January-April reach five-year high

Foreign direct investment inflows into Viet Nam reached US$18.24 billion while disbursed volume was estimated at US$7.4 billion in January-April period, the National Statistics Office reported Sunday.

In the first four months this year, Viet Nam licenced 1,249 projects with total registered capital of US$12.15 billion.

Processing and manufacturing continued to take the lead by attracting US$8.12 billion, accounting for 66.8 percent of the total FDI inflows, followed by production and distribution of electricity, gas, and air conditioners, with US$2.31 billion.

Singapore was the top foreign investor in the reviewed period as it poured US$6.05 billion in Viet Nam. South Korea and China came second and third with US$4.08 billion, and US$524.1 million, respectively.

Foreign trade soars

Viet Nam's trade with the rest of the world was estimated to reach US$344.17 billion in the first four months this year, according to the National Statistics Office.

This is the remarkable increase compared to US$277.21 billion of the same period last year, said the statistics agency.

In April alone, the trade volume was estimated at US$94.32 billion, an increase of eight percent from March and 26.7 percent against the same period last year.

The U.S. remained the largest importer of Vietnamese goods with US$53.9 billion while China sustained its position as the top goods supplier to Viet Nam with US$69 billion.

Viet Nam's imports from tradional markets significantly increased in the January-April period, with South Korea and ASEAN reporting growth rates of 57.8 percent and 44.3 percent, respectively.