HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng on Wednesday urged Chinese businesses to expand investment in Việt Nam while focusing on higher-quality projects, advanced technologies and stronger links with Vietnamese companies.Speaking at a meeting with Chinese businesses operating in Việt Nam, the Prime Minister said the next phase of bilateral economic cooperation should focus not simply on increasing investment, but on making investment more effective, substantive and beneficial to the Vietnamese economy.
The meeting focused on six key sectors, including processing and manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, high-tech agriculture, telecommunications and digital transformation, and finance and banking.Chinese businesses shared information about their investment and production activities, raised difficulties and obstacles, and proposed solutions to the Government, ministries and local authorities.The companies praised Việt Nam’s improving investment and business environment, particularly streamlined administrative procedures and clearer responsibilities following the restructuring of the state apparatus. They said Việt Nam is becoming an increasingly important market and expressed interest in expanding investment and pursuing new cooperation opportunities.According to figures presented at the meeting, two-way trade between Việt Nam and China reached approximately US$184.3 billion in the first seven months of this year, an increase of 35.1 per cent year-on-year.Chinese investors registered nearly US$3.7 billion in investment capital in Việt Nam during the period, while China ranked first in the number of newly registered projects, with around 850 projects.By the end of July, more than 7,000 Chinese-invested projects remained valid in Việt Nam, with total registered capital of nearly US$37 billion. Investment has increasingly focused on processing and manufacturing, infrastructure, energy, electronics and technology.Prime Minister Hưng said the two economies have significant potential for cooperation due to their complementary strengths.
He called on Chinese companies to continue viewing Việt Nam as a long-term investment and business destination and to increase investment in projects featuring advanced technologies and greater economic and technological spillovers.He urged Chinese businesses to translate major cooperation priorities agreed by the leaders of the two countries into concrete projects, particularly in strategic infrastructure connectivity, including railway links between Việt Nam and China, urban railways, logistics and smart border gates.Other priority areas include clean energy, advanced processing and manufacturing, as well as emerging sectors such as the digital economy, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, 5G and big data.The Prime Minister also encouraged Chinese businesses to strengthen research and development and innovation, expand cooperation with Vietnamese enterprises, enable local companies to participate in supply chains, increase localisation and promote effective technology transfer and workforce training.He stressed that future investment should meet green and sustainable development standards, respect workers’ legitimate rights and interests, and fulfil corporate social responsibilities.“Every project must be beneficial to investors while also contributing to Việt Nam’s production capacity, technology, employment, State budget revenues and the development of Vietnamese businesses,” the Prime Minister said.
For major projects, he called on investors to bring advanced technologies, management expertise and internationally competitive solutions, creating high-quality and efficient works and products that could become new landmarks in bilateral economic cooperation.Prime Minister Hưng also agreed in principle to address 44 proposals and recommendations raised by Chinese businesses across the six sectors.He said Việt Nam is accelerating institutional reforms, improving the investment and business environment and simplifying administrative procedures. The Government is also streamlining procedures through the National Public Service Portal so that businesses and investors do not have to provide information or data that is already available to authorities.Regulations, he said, should be public, transparent, easy to understand and easy to comply with, helping reduce compliance time and costs for businesses, including foreign-invested enterprises.The Prime Minister said he had instructed the Minister of Finance to establish a mechanism to receive and resolve businesses’ difficulties and recommendations as quickly as possible.
Ministries and local authorities were also urged to proactively guide businesses, address their concerns effectively and provide clear responses.The Government will continue to listen to investors, work alongside businesses and protect their lawful and legitimate rights and interests, Prime Minister Hưng said, reaffirming its commitment to creating favourable conditions for Chinese companies to invest and operate successfully and sustainably in Việt Nam.He expressed his hope that Chinese businesses would continue to expand their presence in Việt Nam with greater confidence, a longer-term vision and higher-quality, more efficient projects that generate stronger economic, technological and social benefits.
