U.S. companies rise on Vietnam investment table

U.S. companies rise on Vietnam investment table

HANOI (Reuter): The United States has climbed six places on
Vietnam's foreign investment chart in the past month and the
amount invested has nearly quadrupled to US$78 million, according
to official figures released yesterday.

U.S. companies now have 11 projects licensed in Vietnam
compared with four projects with capital of $20 million on May 3,
the State Committee for Cooperation and Investment (SCCI) said.

The May 3 chart marked the first U.S. entry in the list, in
24th position, following President Bill Clinton's lifting of a
30-year-old U.S. trade embargo on February 3. In the new list,
the United States was in 18th place.

A full list of the U.S. projects was not available. They
include Mobil's oil exploration joint venture in Vietnam's
offshore Blue Dragon Field and joint-venture deals signed by soft
drink makers Coca Cola and Pepsi Cola.

Otis Elevator became the latest U.S. company to sign a joint
venture agreement with an Hanoi enterprise this week.
Taiwan, Hong Kong and South Korea remain the dominant investors
in projects now underway, with pledged capital totaling $3.7
billion.

Following are the top 10 investors (tabulate under position,
country, number of projects, total capital in U.S. dollars): 1.
Taiwan, 124 projects, $1.58 billion. 2. Hong Kong, 143, $1.42
billion. 3. South Korea, 65, $700 million. 4. Australia, 34, $616
million. 5. Singapore, 58, $537 million. 6. Japan, 53, $496
million. 7. Malaysia, 25, $494 million. 8. France, 48, $436
million. 9. Britain, 13, $358 million. 10. Netherlands, 12, $350
million.