He made the statement while hosting a reception for heads of leading South Korean corporations as part of his ongoing visit to the East Asian country.

Meeting with Chairman of Hyosung Group Cho Hyun-joo, Deputy PM Hue said the group was one of the largest Korean investors in Viet Nam with US$3 billion registered in production projects in Dong Nai and Quang Nam provinces.

He spoke highly of the group’s presence in the Vietnamese market, and hoped that it would land long-term investments and expand project scale in the Southeast Asian country.

Responding to Cho’s queries on the approval for the expansion of Tam Thang Industrial Park in Quang Nam Province, and Nhon Trach Industrial Park in Dong Nai Province, as well as recommendations for the construction of a ring road along the Tan Van-Nhon Trach section, Hue said the Government would entrust the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance to handle the issues.

In a separate reception for Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong Bin, Deputy PM Hue said the Government would back the group to settle challenges such as those at EcoSmartCity Thu Thiem and Ha Noi Lotte Mall.

He took the occasion to thank Lotte for supporting the Vietnamese farm produce programme, nudging the country’s tropical agricultural products closer to foreign consumers.

Hue also had meetings with CEO of Hanhwa Energy Ryu Du-hyung, CEO of GS Engineering & Construction Corporation Woo Mu-hion, and leaders of South Korean property ventures.

The same day, he witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding on strategic co-operation on studying and producing fully biodegradable plastic bags between An Phat Holdings JSC and TLC Korea.

According to the agreement, An Phat would contribute 51 per cent of capital into TLC Korea to produce fully biodegradable materials and products for the South Korean market.

They would also establish a research and development centre in South Korea on fully biodegradable materials as well as build a $100 million factory in Viet Nam. This would be the first plant to produce bioplastic PBAt in Southeast Asia with yearly capacity of 50,000 tonnes by 2025 to supply the Asian market.

The deputy PM also visited representatives of the Vietnamese community and staff at the Vietnamese Embassy in the RoK.

Currently, South Korea is the largest investor, and second largest ODA provider for Viet Nam.

Under an MoU signed between both sides in 2018, they will work together to increase trade revenue to $100 billion by 2020. — VNS