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Investment minister makes official visit to South Korea
A Vietnamese delegation led by the Minister of Planning and Investment on Thursday began an official visit to South Korea to strengthen economic and investment cooperation between the two countries.
Besides meeting with top officials, Minister Bui Quang Vinh also plans to visit leading Korean companies with investment in Viet Nam, including Samsung, Kumho Asiana, Posco, CJ and Lotte.
"One of the main purposes of the visit is to further promote investment of leading South Korean groups into Viet Nam," Vinh told Dau Tu newspaper.
Korean enterprises have invested in 3,071 projects with registered capital of US$24.24 billion, ranking second out of countries and territories with investment in Viet Nam, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment.
Korean investment projects in northern Bac Ninh Province have greatly contributed to the development of the province's key industrial sectors.
As a result, the province has become the centre for telecommunications and electronics of the country, according to Nguyen Luong Thanh, deputy chairman of the Bac Ninh Province People's Committee.
Launched in 2009, the Samsung factory in Bac Ninh Province exported more than $6 billion worth of electronics last year. The figure is expected to reach $10 billion this year.
More than 20,000 labourers have been working at the Samsung factory, with an average salary of VND6 million each, Thanh said, adding that since Samsung had opened its factory in the province, the province had attracted 31 satellite investors with a combined registered capital of $300 million.
Samsung plans to raise its investment capital for its first plant in Viet Nam to $1.5 billion from the original of $670 million to turn the project in Bac Ninh into Samsung Complex, which would specialise in developing advanced technology.
Shim Won Hwan, general director of Samsung Complex, said Samsung pledged to invest long-term in Viet Nam. The company sent a request to the Government to ask for tax cuts for its expansion plan.
Another big Korean group, Kumho Asiana, also plans to expand its tire plant in southern Binh Duong Province and develop a new large-scale property project in Ha Noi.
Similarly, many other Korean groups, including Posco, Lotte, Hyundai, LG and CJ, have been very successful in Viet Nam.
Hong Sun, general secretary of the South Korean Business Association in Viet Nam, said the country had investment potential but should make more efforts to improve the business environment to attract more foreign investors.
Kim Jai Woo, chairman of the Korean Chamber of Commerce in HCM City, said many countries faced difficulties in luring foreign investment.
Woo said Korean businesses would gradually increase investment in Viet Nam when the global economy improves.
vietnamnews
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