Vietnam's story is not just about FDI and exports.

Recently, HSBC Bank published the report "Global Connections: Connecting Southeast Asia (ASEAN) and the world" showing that Vietnam is considered an attractive market for foreign businesses thanks to its resilient economy during and after the Covid-19 pandemic, a hard-working skilled workforce, and competitive salaries.

Câu chuyện của Việt Nam không chỉ xoay quanh FDI và xuất khẩu

Vietnam's resilient economy and competitive wages are two top factors in attracting foreign businesses. (Source: Tuoi Tre Thu Do)

The above issues are considered advantages in attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) into Vietnam.

Mr. Tim Evans, CEO of HSBC Vietnam, commented that the story of this country does not only revolve around FDI and exports but also continues with the consumption sector because of the growing middle class here. The country is expected to become the 10th largest consumer market in the world by 2030, opening up many opportunities for international businesses in this consumer sector.

“Despite the current challenges, Vietnam remains an attractive destination for foreign businesses. We continue to see strong interest in the Southeast Asian country’s story from customers across the HSBC network,” he stressed.

According to HSBC, Vietnam’s resilient economy and competitive wages are the top two factors in attracting foreign businesses. A skilled workforce is also seen by international companies as one of the attractive features of Vietnam as a manufacturing base.

At the same time, some international businesses see Vietnam’s growing consumer market as an opportunity and highlight rising consumer affluence as an attractive feature. Decision-makers in Chinese and Indian companies highlight the opportunity to rapidly scale their businesses in this sizeable market.

Indian companies also pointed to the opportunity to develop and test new products and solutions, saying this attracted them to expand their operations here. About a quarter of companies also saw Vietnam’s advantage in terms of demographics and its young population.

In addition, Vietnam's growing digital economy is also a strong point attracting businesses to expand their operations.

HSBC said many companies surveyed said they were attracted by Vietnam’s high smartphone penetration and vibrant start-up sector. Some companies surveyed believe the Vietnamese economy will see significant growth over the next 10 years thanks to technological changes.

The bank pointed out: "Vietnam's importance in global trade flows is reflected in strong interest in free trade agreements. Overall, 63% of companies participating in the survey intend to take advantage of the Vietnam-European Union (EU) Trade Agreement, which took effect in August 2020 with the goal of eliminating 99% of tariffs and reducing trade barriers between the two sides."

Source