Under this agreement, the sides will exchange information, find out opportunities, support and consult administrative procedures and legal investment procedures for investors.

Those parties will also organise investment promotion activities in South Korea and create access for South Korean business associations and their members to find investors and projects in Hanoi.

According to Tran Duc Hoat, deputy director of the Hanoi Municipal Authority for Planning and Investment, the agreement means Hanoi would continue being one of the most attractive destinations for South Korean investors.

Park Jung Hwan, co-chairman of the Vietnam - Korea Business Centre (VKBC) said that Vietnam was considered one of the most important, reliable and potential partners to South Korea.

“Leading companies from Korea such as Samsung, LG and Posco have operated in Vietnam successfully for years and they are also continuing to expand their activities here,” Hwan said.

The Samsung complexes in the northern provinces of Bac Ninh and Thai Nguyen are attracting a range of part suppliers and logistics companies in different fields of construction, ports and home appliances.

Park Jae Hyung, VKBC’s general director agreed that it was high time for South Korean companies to come to the Vietnamese market.

“Vietnam has been improving its position in the global economic map. After the Second World War, the global economy marked the development of giant economic developers such as South Korea, China, Singapore and many others. I think that stepping into the 21st century, Vietnam will upgrade its position, thanks to its dynamism and co-operation with South Korean companies through their investments in Vietnam,” Hyung said.

VKBC is connecting with Korean investors and bringing them to Vietnam, among those are investors in fields such as engineering equipment and appliances, energy and high-level technical sectors.

Mac Quoc Anh, vice chairman cum general secretary of the Hanoi Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Association said that co-ordinating with the Hanoi Investment Promotion Centre and VKBC would be good opportunity for the association’s members to have more information and access to the business contact with foreign companies.

“After this signing ceremony we will encourage our members to be more active in the Hanoi Investment Promotion Centre’s promotion activities in order to achieve the targets which we have mapped out,” said Anh.

Hanoi has an average income per capita of $2,490 in 2013, compared to the nation-wide average of $1,899. The success of Hanoi’s socio-economic growth was contributed by domestic enterprises, foreign investors, especially investors from South Korea, according to Hoat.

By the end of September, South Korea topped the number of foreign invested projects and registered foreign direct investment capital in Hanoi, with 812 projects and $4.69 billion, occupying 28.9 per cent of the foreign invested projects’ number and 22.1 per cent of the registered foreign direct investment capital.

Hanoi planned to reach $1.3 billion of registered foreign direct investment capital for the whole year of 2014, an increase of 17 per cent compared to the previous year.

South Korea has been one of the leading foreign investors in Vietnam. At present, South Korea has 4,020 projects in Vietnam with the total registered investment capital of $33.4 billion, accounting for 23 per cent of the total number of foreign invested projects and 13.7 per cent of the total registered foreign direct investment capital.