Foreign direct investment was worth around US$125 million, double the amount that came in during the same period last year.

Companies constructing factories and warehouses accounted for nearly 69 per cent of the investment, with pharmaceuticals, software and food processing also accounting for major shares.

Hua Quoc Hung, head of the HCM City Export and Processing Zones Authority, said investment was increasing because Viet Nam and HCM City had been controlling the pandemic well.

The city and his agency had been helping investors overcome problems caused by the pandemic and global economic instability, which would also attract further investment, he said.

But land was running out in the city’s industrial parks and processing zones, while new industrial parks were launching too slowly due to land compensation and legality problems, he said.

Hung said his agency would speed up the construction and opening of new industrial parks to offer more land to investors.

It would also work with other agencies to acquire more land for industrial zones for use in 2021 – 25, he said.

Existing zones also have problems such as lack of technical infrastructure and pollution, he added. — VNS