Jun 23, 2009, 5:44 GMT
Hanoi - Foreign direct investment to Vietnam in was down 19 per the first half of 2009 cent compared to the same period last year, authorities reported Tuesday.
The website of Vietnam's Foreign Investment Agency said disbursement of foreign direct investment (FDI) fell to 4 billion dollars through June 2009. Registration of new FDI fell to 8.9 billion dollars, down 73 per cent from the same period last year.
'At the moment we can't predict when Vietnam will resume attracting FDI as fast as it used to before the economic crisis,' said Le Hai Van, head of the agency's Statistics and Policy Division.
The drop in FDI was in line with the rest of the economy's performance. Exports fell to 27.57 billion dollars in the first six months of 2009, down 10 per cent year-on-year, the Ministry of Trade said.
Tourism was also down, with 1.7 million foreign visitors to Vietnam in the first half, down 19 per cent from last year.
Vietnam's domestic economy has recently shown some signs of recovery. The state-run newspaper Sai Gon Giai Phong (Liberated Sai Gon) reported Monday that the rate of industrial production increased by 4 per cent over last year.
But overall the country appeared unlikely to meet its economic targets for the year, the paper said. The total of foreign visitors for the year will likely reach 3.2 million, far short of the government target of 4.5 million.
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