This is the statement of the Minister of Finance, Ho Duc Phoc, at the Investment Promotion Conference in South Korea with the theme “Vietnam – Investment Destination” held in Seoul, South Korea on March 7.
The conference attracted nearly 300 businesses from South Korea and Vietnam, including financial institutions, banks, investment funds, securities companies, and businesses from the two countries.
Vietnam has made many achievements in economic growth
In his welcoming speech at the conference, Mr. Kim Yong Jae, the permanent member of the Financial Supervisory Committee of South Korea (FSC), said that since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1992, Vietnam and South Korea have become indispensable partners in all fields. At present, there are about 9,000 South Korean businesses operating in Vietnam. South Korea has also become the largest investor in Vietnam. The two countries have also become the top 3 trading partners of each other.
Mr. Kim Yong Jae speaks at the conference
In the financial sector, Vietnam is also the second country in the world where Korean financial companies and organizations are present, with a total of 46 organizations, including banks, insurance companies, and securities companies.
“Vietnam has achieved impressive economic growth over a long period of time. Vietnam’s average annual growth rate over the past 20 years is 6.29%, and recently Vietnam has also recorded high economic growth rates in the context of global economic slowdown. This economic growth is the result of the effort of the Vietnamese government and people, combined with the decisive investment of international businesses,” said Mr. Kim Yong Jae.
Vietnam is a bright investment spot
In his speech at the conference, Minister of Finance Ho Duc Phoc affirmed that the participation of many businesses and investors is one of the clearest evidence of the efforts of the Vietnamese government in creating a favorable and attractive investment and business environment for foreign businesses and investors, especially those from South Korea.
The minister said that in 2023, economic, trade, and investment relations between Vietnam and South Korea continue to develop positively. Vietnam is South Korea’s third largest trading partner with a total bilateral trade turnover of nearly 80 billion USD in 2023, of which South Korea exports more to Vietnam with a value of 27.55 billion USD. The total investment capital from South Korea into Vietnam has reached about 90 billion USD so far. South Korean investors are currently ranked first among the countries investing in Vietnam, with more than 9,863 projects and over 8,000 South Korean businesses operating in Vietnam. In 2023, Vietnam also welcomed more than 3.5 million Korean tourists and there are currently about 180,000 Koreans living and working in Vietnam.
Minister of Finance Ho Duc Phoc affirms that the Ministry of Finance is committed to accompanying and creating favorable conditions for businesses, and investors from both countries
“We can completely trust the target of increasing bilateral trade turnover to 150 billion USD by 2030 in a balanced and sustainable manner,” Minister Ho Duc Phoc said.
To achieve this goal, within the scope of its responsibility, the Ministry of Finance of Vietnam cooperates with the Embassy of South Korea to organize an annual policy dialogue conference in the financial sector to exchange, listen, and resolve difficulties, creating the most favorable conditions for South Korean businesses and investors in Vietnam.
Providing information to the conference, Minister of Finance Ho Duc Phoc added that in recent years, although Vietnam has been greatly affected by the global economic recession, the Vietnamese economy has maintained good growth rates and has been a bright spot in terms of investment, attracting direct and indirect capital flows globally. In 2023, large economic balances continue to be maintained stable, with impressive figures: Vietnam’s GDP increases by 5.05%, and is expected to reach about 6-6.5% in 2024. The average GDP per capita is 4,284.5 USD, increasing by 160 USD compared to 2022.
Many reputable international organizations have highly appreciated the results and prospects of the Vietnamese economy. Fitch Ratings upgraded Vietnam’s long-term credit rating to BB+ (from BB), with a “Stable” outlook, among 62 countries in Asia-Pacific, only 2 countries have been upgraded. By the end of 2023, public debt is about 37% of GDP, much lower than the ceiling of 60% set by the National Assembly.
Vietnam is determined to upgrade the stock market
Regarding the Vietnamese financial market, Minister Ho Duc Phoc said that the Vietnamese government is particularly concerned and has many carefully guided directions to consolidate and promptly resolve difficulties and obstacles to firmly develop a stable, healthy, and sustainable market, ensuring the legitimate rights and interests of participating entities.
The Ministry of Finance delegation attending the MOU signing ceremony between SBV and the Korean Financial Investment Association
Regarding the stock market, although it is still quite young, it has developed quite rapidly. The Vietnamese stock market has actively played a positive role as an important long-term capital channel of the economy, as well as an attractive investment destination for domestic and foreign investors. The market structure and legal framework continue to be improved.
By the end of February 2024, the market capitalization has reached nearly 270 billion USD, equivalent to nearly 63% of GDP. The whole market has more than 1,600 listed stocks and fund certificates for trading. The number of investors has grown strongly with 7.4 million securities accounts, equivalent to 7.2% of the population, exceeding the set plan.
Most recently, at the 2024 Stock Market Development Conference held on February 28, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh affirmed: “Vietnam continues to develop a transparent, accountable, safe, efficient, comprehensive, integrated, and sustainable stock market, ensuring the legitimate rights and interests of participating entities. The government is determined to upgrade Vietnam’s stock market from a frontier to an emerging market, with the spirit of “saying is doing, committing to implementing, having tangible and measurable results to attract stronger investment flows from both domestic and foreign.
“I hope that after this conference, businesses from both countries will have more ideas and new cooperative projects to deepen economic cooperation as well as the comprehensive strategic partnership between Vietnam and South Korea. As for the Ministry of Finance of Vietnam, we are committed to accompanying and creating the most favorable conditions for businesses, and investors from both countries to seek investment opportunities and cooperation to achieve the highest efficiency. We welcome South Korean businesses and investors to increase new investments and expand investment scale in Vietnam, maximize the efficiency of cooperation, and investment for our mutual success,” Minister of Finance emphasized.
