Illustrative image (Source: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - The website Inquirer.net of the Philippines published an article on July 17 titled “Vietnam is Southeast Asia’s new industrial powerhouse”, affirming Vietnam has switched from an agricultural economy to one of the brightest manufacturing hotspots in the region over the last 20 years.
The article quoted the latest report from Jones Lang LaSalle, a US financial consultancy group, saying “Vietnam is establishing itself as the industrial powerhouse of Southeast Asia”.
The group forecasted that Vietnam’s industrial market will enter a new phase and move up the value chain in the near future, moving away from labour intensive to capital intensive.
According to the report, in 1986, 335 hectares of land were dedicated to industrial parks in Vietnam, and now the figure is 80,000ha.
“This phenomenal growth can be attributed to Vietnam establishing itself as an export-driven economy, dedicated industrial and economic zones, numerous free trade agreements, strong economic growth and a young, plentiful, low-cost workforce”, it added.
With more Chinese enterprises are looking to place their factories abroad, Vietnam is one of the largest beneficiaries of this migration due to its close proximity.
The article pointed out that Vietnam is strategically located between China and Singapore with 3,260km of coastline, providing access to the East Sea, one of the world’s major shipping routes, where 40 percent of cargo transported from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific has to cross before arriving in China, Japan, the Republic of Korea and the US.
“Many commentators predict the logistics market to be the standout performer over the next five to 10 years”, it noted, adding that the rapid growth of Vietnam’s middle-income population with more disposable income and a growing obsession with e-commerce will put significant demand on logistics facilities.
According to the Asian Development Bank, Vietnam also pays due attention to developing infrastructure as it spends 5.8 percent of its GDP on the work - the highest figure in the region.
The article said to enter the next phase of the industrial and logistics cycle and become more competitive than other regional countries, it is important for Vietnam to continue spending on infrastructure, including highway networks and deep-sea ports.
These initiatives have helped Vietnam attract significant investment from large foreign companies, it said, noting that the best case study is Samsung, which has reportedly invested more than 17 billion USD in Vietnam.-VNA
VNA
