Associated Press

Associated Press
Hanoi

U.S. business delegation said on Thursday that Vietnam's
growing economy is ripe for foreign investment.

"For American business, this is the year to focus on Vietnam.
Vietnam is a stable, fast-growing and promising market for
American companies," said Ernest Bower, president of the U.S.-
Asean Business Council, a private business lobbying group.

The delegation, which included representatives from a dozen
major U.S. firms including Boeing, Citigroup, Ford Motor, Unocal
and UPS, is spending the week touring Vietnam.

The group has had meetings with Deputy Prime Minister Vu
Khoan, Planning and Investment Minister Vo Hong Phuc and Trade
Minister Truong Dinh Tuyen.

In the past decade, Vietnam has been pursuing economic
reforms. But it has struggled to attract foreign investors, with
many overseas companies deterred by red tape, corruption, and
lack of transparency.

But the communist country is now actively wooing foreign
investors, with an eye on entering the World Trade Organization
by 2005. Vietnam's economy grew 7% last year.

Raymond Sander, senior vice-president of New York Life
Insurance, said the Vietnamese leaders expressed a willingness to
address investors' concerns.

"I was very encouraged by not only their recognition of these
issues, but their commitment to resolve a number of the
problems," he said.

The government is planning to privatize 1,200 state-owned
companies over the next two years, and foreigners are allowed to
hold up to a 30% stake in these entities, a senior official said
Thursday.

The U.S. is officially the 11th largest foreign investor in
Vietnam, though U.S. investments through Asian subsidiaries push
that ranking up to fifth, Bower said.

Bilateral trade between the two countries has boomed since the
signing of a historic trade deal in 2001, reaching a record $6
billion last year. The U.S. has become Vietnam's largest trading
partner.