VietNamNet Bridge – Thailand had not been listed among the biggest foreign investors in Vietnam until recently, when more and more Thai projects have been announced. The strong baht policy would pave the way for more Thai investors to Vietnam.

The $27 billion Nhon Hoi petrochemical and oil refinery project suggested by the Thai Oil and Gas group has raised controversy about its feasibility. However, the information about the project updated daily on local newspapers is enough to create a strong echo in Vietnam.

Analysts have also noted that the strong baht policy being pursued by the Thai government would create more favorable conditions for Thai investors to expand their business in Vietnam.

A lot of Thai restaurant brands have announced their plan to join the Vietnamese market so far this year. These include S&P Restaurant, Shabushi belonging to Oishi Group Public Co., Ltd and Black Canyon.

Don T, a Thai businessman, came to Vietnam in 2006. After he opened a restaurant in district 1 of HCM City which specialized in serving Thai dishes, he has decided to work as a representative of a Thai spa brand in Vietnam.

Don said the first spa establishment of the company is located at a five star hotel in HCM City, while Don is looking for some more places to expand the business.

When starting business, Don said, what worried him most was seeking the information about the market scale. He also worried about the investment procedures and the expenses.

However, Don keeps optimistic about his business in Vietnam. In Thailand, where the beauty services have been developing for the last many years, there are not many opportunities for the start ups. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese market still shows great potentials.

He has also noted that besides the fast moving consumer goods FMCG, cafes, restaurants and beauty services are the promising business fields for Thai investors.

When asked if there is the Thai investment wave in Vietnam, Phan Huu Thang, former Head of the Foreign Investment Agency, an arm of the Ministry of Planning and Investment, said though Thai investors are not as “brilliant” like the investors from Japan, South Korea or Singapore, they have advantages at some business fields, such as agriculture, building materials. Some investors have been trying to distribute Thai goods.

The Thai baht has appreciated by six percent against the US dollar since the beginning of the year, while the appreciation is believed to continue. With the strong baht, Thai big investors have been trying to jump into the Vietnamese market by buying Vietnamese companies.

According to the Foreign Investment Agency, by the end of the first quarter of 2013, Thailand had ranked the 9th among the countries and territories which had FDI in Vietnam with 303 registered projects and $6.1 billion.

In the past, Thailand did not have any considerable investment projects in Vietnam. However, things have changed since 2012 when Thai began expanding their FDI and carried out big merger and acquisitions deals in the country.

The project on making building material invested by CP Prime Group led the FDI projects in Vietnam in the first four months of 2013 with the registered investment capital of $239.6 million.

Meanwhile, Siam Cement Group SCG, the 100-year old group has had 17 subsidiaries in Vietnam with the total investment capital of  baht11 billion, or $353 million, which operate in five main business fields of pack production, chemicals, cement, building materials and distribution.

DNSG