Hanoi (VNA) – Fifty-five percent ofGerman businesses, when asked, have said they want to increase investmentcapital in Vietnam, higher than the rate for Southeast Asia (44 percent),according to a survey conducted by the German Industry and Commerce Vietnam(GIC) in April.

The survey namely “AHK World Business Outlook2019” involved German investors and businesses in Vietnam operating in variousfields such as industry, construction, services, and trade.

German enterprises stayed optimistic about theirperformance in Vietnam as well as growth prospects for 2020 despite globaleconomic crisis and escalating trade tensions, according to the survey.

Specifically, 77 percent of German businessesassessed their business situation in 2019 as good. Last year, only 56 percenthad a positive view of their performance. This result is much higher than theaverage rate of Southeast Asian nations – 61 percent.

2018 was evaluated as a successful year ofVietnam’s economy with a GDP growth of 7.1 percent. The foreign directinvestment (FDI) reached 13 billion USD while the import-export turnover hit arecord of 465 billion USD, with a trade surplus of over 7 billion USD.

The Vietnamese Government is willing to supportforeign investors to do business in the country.

Vietnam’s participation in a number of freetrade agreements such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement forTrans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement(EVFTA) is a favourable factor to boost the country’s economy.

The survey also showed that compared to otherSoutheast Asian countries, Vietnam received more special attention from Germanbusinesses.

Fifty-nine percent of German investors inVietnam plan to hire more workers in 2019-2020 to serve the expansion of theirbusiness.

The conclusion of negotiations for the EVFTA isexpected by German businesses to help improve the legal framework and economicpolicies in Vietnam.

However, they also pointed to some factors thatmight pose challenges to their development such as economic policies, lack ofhigh-quality labour, increasing personnel costs, and trade barriers.

Chief representative of the GIC in Vietnam MarkoWalde said the country is one of the Southeast Asian nations that German businesseshave selected to land investment.

A majority of German businesses havingfactories in Vietnam had intention to increase investment capital in Vietnam,he added.-VNA