Vietnam remains a safe destination in the eyes of Japanese investors as the Vietnamese economy continues to grow and integrate into the regional and global economies. Despite a decline in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Vietnam, Japanese businesses have continued to increase their investment into Vietnam, especially since mid 2011.
               
                
							
                             According to the Ministry of  Planning and Investment, up to the end of 2008, Japan has invested in  Vietnam more than US$17 billion and by the end of 2011 that increased to  nearly US$24 billion. In the first four months of 2012, Japan took the  lead among countries and territories having newly licensed investment  projects in Vietnam with over US$2.36 billion, accounting for 76 percent  of the total amount of FDI registered in Vietnam in that period.  Japanese FDI in Vietnam is predicted to continue to grow because it  matches with the Vietnamese Government’s orientation for FDI attraction.  Vietnamese people and government officials at different levels highly  appreciate Japanese FDI. Japanese investors are considered as the most  serious foreign investors in Vietnam. They have high technology and  strong financial capacity. 
After an investment promotion  trip to Japan in April 2012, Dong Nai Province People’s Committee  Chairman Dinh Quoc Thai said that there are many reasons encouraging  Japan to increase investment in Vietnam. Firstly, after the earthquake  and tsunami in March 2011, the Japanese Government has encouraged small  and medium-sized domestic businesses to boost overseas investment.  Secondly, businesses of the two countries share many similarities in  terms of capital and therefore they can easily promote cooperation. In  addition, Vietnam and Japan have agreed to boost bilateral trade based  on the VND/JPY exchange rate but not any other foreign currency, so  Japanese investors do not have to worry about the depreciation of their  currency. The potential of Japanese investment in Vietnam and Dong Nai  Province in particular is very big. 
Nowadays, Japanese investors  want to build their trading facilities, including retail shops and big  supermarkets, with the aim to bring products made in Japan or other  countries to Vietnam. A series of Japanese self-service shops in Vietnam  such as Family Mart, MiniStop and Aeon are increasing their presence in  the country by opening more shops in Ho   Chi Minh City. Apart from  these retailers, a leading retail group of Japan, Takashimaya, is  looking towards the Vietnamese market and it will be accompanied by  world famous fashion brands.
Along with expanding the sales  and distribution network, investing in the real estate market has been  another option of Japanese investors in Vietnam in the recent period.  The Tokyu Corporation of Japan, in cooperation with the Becamex IDC  Corporation of Vietnam, began work on a US$1.2 billion property project  covering 71ha in Binh Duong  Province in early March 2012. This project  consists of entertainment facilities, trade centers, office and  apartment buildings with about 7,500 housing units. 
In the field of industrial real  estate, some Japanese industrial park (IP) infrastructure developers  have entered the Vietnamese market. Recently, two Japanese investors,  Mizuho Bank and Chodai Corporation, came to Vietnam to discuss the  second stage of the infrastructure development project for the Hiep  Phuoc IP in Nha Be District, Ho Chi Minh City. They are working with the  Hiep Phuoc IP Infrastructure Development Company to develop a specific  IP for Japanese companies in Ho Chi Minh City. This project comes in  line with the city’s development orientation, under which a specialized  IP will be established to attract Japanese investment in the field of  support industries. 
In Dong Nai Province, in  February 2012, the Long Duc Investment Company Limited, a joint venture  between three Japanese companies, Sojitz Corporation, Daiwa House  Industry, Kobelco Eco-Solution, and Donafood (Vietnam), broke the ground  to start construction of the infrastructure for the 282.8ha Long Duc IP  in Long Thanh District. With total investment of more than VND1.08  trillion, construction of this IP is projected to finish in August 2013.  Jesco Holding, a Japanese specialist in the field of technology and  infrastructure construction investment, has decided to contribute its  capital to the Hoa Binh Infrastructure Investment and Construction Joint  Stock Company (HBI) - the infrastructure investor of the Long Hau 4 IP  in Long An Province. Jesco will provide HBI with consultancy for IP  development and help it attract Japanese investment. 
Some Mergers and Acquisitions  (M&A) affairs in the field of consumer goods, for example Kirin  Holding bought acquired 50 percent of the stocks at the International  Food Joint Stock Company (Interfood); Daio Paper bought the stocks of  the Saigon Paper Company; the Ezaki Glico Co., Ltd., a specialized  confectionary and food business of Japan, owns about 10 percent of the  chartered capital of the Kinh Do Corporation. Japanese businesses have  found favorable conditions to invest in Vietnam as Vietnamese companies  are coping with lots of difficulties; the interest rate in Vietnam is  higher than in Japan; the shares of Vietnamese companies are currently  sold at very low prices. 
Reality shows that Japanese  businesses are expanding their operations into many new fields in  Vietnam. They consider Vietnam as an ideal investment destination. It is  believed that in the new future, Vietnam will welcome a new wave of  investment from Japan.