Australia Investment Forum provided Vietnamese businesses with knowledge of the investment environment and opportunities to invest into Australian Resources & Energy, Advanced Manufacturing, Agrifood, Infrastructure, Logistics & Services, Technology and Tourism sectors.

Representatives of Vietnamese and Australian governments and speakers at Australia Investment Forum 2023

Representatives from Australian federal agencies & state governments and Vietnamese government foreign investment agency and investors shared information on foreign direct investment policies, market opportunities, challenges and provided guidance on business practices that can support businesses with their investment plans. The Forum also offered chances for Vietnamese businesses to discuss directly with representatives of Australian state and territories governments and Home Affairs.

Vietnam – Australia relations grows strongly across all sectors. Both countries aim to double the scale of two-way investment and become each other’s top 10 trading partners in the future.

The two-way trade reached US$16 billion in 2022, making Vietnam the 10th largest trade partner of Australia and Australia becomes Vietnam’s 7th largest trade partner.

Australian investors are operating 593 projects in Vietnam with a total registered capital of approximately US$2 billion, ranked 20th out of 143 countries and territories investing in the Southeast Asian nation (as of March 2023), focusing on the fields of processing industry, manufacturing, accommodation and catering services, agriculture, forestry and fishery. Most recently Australian businesses are investing in Vietnam and teaming up with Vietnam business partners in resources and energy sector with the focus on renewable energy, battery for EV and energy storage solutions, to contribute to Vietnam energy transition toward the goal of net zero commitment by 2050.

Vietnamese businesses have invested around US$500 million in Australia. Recent investments from leading Vietnamese firms TH Group, Hoa Phat Group, TTC AgriS and Vitadairy demonstrated many opportunities that Australia has offered to Vietnamese investors, as well as the complementarity and diversification potential between the two countries’ supply chains.

In 2022-23, Australia continued to outperform other advanced economies, with a growth rate of 3.4%. This compares to an estimated 2.4% for advanced economies. Australia’s legal and governance systems are transparent and trustworthy, making the country a global leader in the protection of property rights, including intellectual property rights. The open and adaptive regulatory environment makes Australia a business-friendly nation.

One-on-one meetings with Australian States and Territories representatives

Sarah Hooper, Australian Consul-General in Ho Chi Minh City, said: “With an open economy, multiple FTAs and strong cultural links with Asia; we see enormous potential to expand our trade and investment relationship and there are real opportunities in Australia for Vietnamese investors who take the time to get to know the market and to invest their business in Australia which link to their supply chains in Vietnam and in international markets.”

To further promote economic, investment and trade cooperation between Vietnam and Australia, the representative of Vietnam’s Foreign Investment Agency, Ministry of Planning and Investment emphasised: “Vietnam and Australia have complementary economics and there is much room for development. In addition to welcoming Australian businesses to continue researching and expanding investment in Vietnam, we expect that there will be more Vietnamese investment projects appearing in Australia in near future. And today’s Australian Investment Forum 2023 will contribute to that goal.”

This forum successfully raised awareness of investment opportunities in Australia and attracted over 200 participants from businesses in Vietnam.