Vietnam is estimated to entice over 2.5 billion U.S. dollars in foreign direct investment (FDI) in the first three months of this year, a year-on-year rise of 22 percent, according to a local investment agency on Friday.

So far this year, 196 new foreign-invested projects totaling nearly 2.1 billion dollars have been licensed, while 109 existing projects have raised their combined capital by 432 million dollars, said the Foreign Investment Agency under the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment.

Vietnam, which lured total FDI of 10.2 billion dollars in 2006, is considering approval for 14 large projects with total registered capital of 20 billion dollars. Foxconn from China's Taiwan is expected to invest five billion dollars in building a plant, probably in northern Bac Ninh province or neighboring Bac Giang province, to produce high-quality electronic products, and Gamuda from Malaysia plans to pour one billion dollars into building an office building and apartment complex in Hanoi capital, the agency said.

As of Feb. 22, the country housed 6,992 foreign-invested projects with total registered capital of nearly over 62.8 billion dollars.

Source: Xinhua