United Arab Emirates (UAE) investors are eyeing Vietnam as a good place for investment. Billionaires from the oil country are planning to inject $4.2bil in two projects in HCM City.

UAE investors said at the Vietnam – UAE business forum held on the occasion of Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Trade Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan’s visit to UAE in June 2006 that Vietnam would be the ‘centre’ of their investment deals in the next few years. Analysts believe that the investment capital from UAE will flow into the fields of construction, real estate and tourism.

Incidentally, Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates officially established diplomatic relations in August 1993. Two-way trade has witnessed considerable growth since then, from $118mil in 2003 to $150mil in 2004, and $200mil in 2005, of which, Vietnam exported $121mil worth of products. Vietnam’s main export items to the country are electronic parts, footwear, tobacco, apparel, wooden furniture, seafood and agricultural products. The UAE exports foodstuffs, cattle, cotton, urea, plastics, machineries, automobile and automobile parts.

The reasons quoted by UAE investors to choose Vietnam as one of the new investment destinations are Vietnam is a fast-growing economy with good political stability and young population.

Some of the potential investors are Millennium Airport in Dubai, private air carrier Dolphin Airlines which would like to ask to open a direct air route from Dubai to HCM City. The airline will later consider making investment in a hotel system to be set up along the southern seaside in Vietnam.

Prior to that, the real estate trading group Sama Dubai has decided to invest in the project to build Cua Dai bridge in Hoi An town in the central province of Quang Nam. The 1,256m cable-stay bridge will be built under the mode of BOT (build – operation – transfer), which is estimated to cost VND400bil ($25mil). The group is also eyeing HCM City, planning to set up an urban area in Thu Thiem area, and a shipbuilding yard, capitalised at $4.2bil for both.

Meanwhile, Dubai Ports World has revealed its plan to inject $3.5bil in five big ports in the world, including one port in HCM City.

According to Dang Ngoc Quang, Vietnamese Commercial Attaché in Dubai, Vietnam’s Embassy in Dubai is always asked by UAE investors about the investment environment in Vietnam. Most recently, Genfinancial Holding GA has asked for help to contact the Director General of the Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Group (Vinashin) to discuss a plan to set up a shipbuilding joint venture capitalised at Euro434mil.

According to international experts, the oil price fluctuation over the last three years, which saw one barrel of oil increase from $20 to $70 has brought about the colossal profit of several hundred billion dollars to investors in the Middle East. The investors are planning to invest these vast sums of money in other countries.

(Source: VietNamNet Bridge)

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