The FED’s move of raising the interest rate is expected to affect FDI flow to emerging markets like Vietnam. However, analysts say the theory may not occur in Vietnam.
In December 2016, FED raised the interest rate to 0.75 percent per annum.
By March 20, 2017, Vietnam had licensed 493 new foreign invested projects, an increase of 4.2 percent in comparison with the same period last year, with the total registered capital of US$2.92 billion, an increase of 6.5 percent.
Meanwhile, investors had registered the capital increase for 223 projects (up by 9.9 percent) with the total additional capital of US$3.94 billion (three times higher).
There were 1.077 deals of capital contribution and stake acquisition reported (up by 48.3 percent) with the total value of US$853 million (2.7 times higher).
As such, the total FDI capital registered in the period was US$7.71 billion, a sharp increase of 77.6 percent compared with the same period last year. The implemented capital was US$3.62 billion, up by 3.4 percent.
In March 2017, FED once again raised the interest rate to 1.0 percent. By May 20, 2017, Vietnam had licensed 939 new projects (up by 3.5 percent) with total registered capital of US$5.6 billion (down by 26.1 percent). There had been 437 expanded projects (up by 2.8 percent) with additional registered capital of US$4.74 billion (up by 83 percent) and 2,061 deals of capital contribution valued at US$1.79 billion in total, twice as much as the same period last year.
By May 20, 2017, the total FDI capital registered in the period was US$12.13 billion, up by 10.4 percent. The implemented capital was US$6.15 billion, up by 6 percent.
The figures don’t show evidence about the effects of the interest rate hike to the FDI capital flow to Vietnam. There was no clear downward tendency in the capital registered in the months after FED raised interest rates.
A report showed US$750.71 million worth of FDI from the Eurozone was registered in Vietnam in 2016, which accounted for 3.1 percent of total FDI capital.
The figure was US$622 million in the first five months of the year, or 5 percent of total FDI capital.
As for investors from the US, the newly registered and additional capital in the first five months of the year was US$96 million, an increase of 20.3 percent over the same period last year.
