The southern province of Dong Nai has lured over 1.6 billion USD in foreign direct investment (FDI) so far this year, becoming one of the leading localities in attracting the capital.

According to the provincial Department of Planning and Investment, as of December 15, 834 million USD has been poured into 78 new foreign-invested projects and 773 million USD has been added to 73 operating ones.

Hi-tech projects and those in the support industry and services attracted the highest amount of FDI, the department said, adding that the province will not license those projects that use backward technology and are likely to cause environmental pollution.

So far, Dong Nai province has operated more than 1,380 foreign-invested projects, capitalised at nearly 24.32 billion USD. They include 1,067 valid ones with a total capital of nearly 20 billion USD.

Taiwan , the Republic of Korea and Japan have topped the list of 40 countries and territories investing in the province, the department revealed.-VNA