The intent of the foreign investors is to turn wetlands into an urban area multifunctional model, a center of finance, trade, services, industry, science, culture, education, residence, and recreation, It is an impetus for the development of the southern and southeastern sections of the city. 

Unlike the central District 1 associated with the city’s history, Phu My Hung was built associated with modern concepts. On 26.06.2008, the Ministry of Construction and the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City named Phu My Hung as an example of the "urban style" of Vietnam.

Located in the south of Saigon, Phu My Hung is one of the urban areas that lead the country in the proportion of green space, with 8.9m2 per person. The first work built in 2005 in Phu My Hung was the South Saigon School; it was later presented to the HCM City Department of Education.

Phu My Hung annually organizes many community activities such as a charity walking program Lawrence S. Ting, Spring Flower Festival, and a concert tribute to late musician Trinh Cong Son, among others. 

The project to revive Nhieu Loc - Thi Nghe Canal: After 10 years of implementation, in August 2012 the first phase of the project was inaugurated after the expectation of millions of local people. 

The total investment for the first period was more than VND8.6 trillion, of which over VND1.6 trillion was for site clearance. Nearly 16 km of embankments were built, nearly 1.1 million m3 of soil were dredged, and 16 bridges along the canal were reinforced. This is the largest-scale project in HCM City.

Saigon River Tunnel: This is part of the East-West Highway project connecting District 1 with the Thu Thiem New Urban Area. The six-lane tunnel was submerged beneath the Saigon River. Investment capital came from Official Development Assistance (ODA) of the Japanese government and the reciprocal funds of the Government of Vietnam. 

As planned, the Thu Thiem New Urban Area is connected to the existing urban area by a number of bridges such as Thu Thiem Bridge to Binh Thanh District, Ba Son Bridge to District 1,and  Phu The Bridge to District 7 and another bridge to District 4. On November 20, 2011, Thu Thiem Tunnel was inaugurated. This is the most modern tunnel in Southeast Asia.

The Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HOSE) was founded in July 2000. HOSE is a unit of the State Securities Commission and it manages the listed securities transaction system of Vietnam. HOSE is located at 16 Vo Van Kiet Avenue, Nguyen Thai Binh Ward, District 1, with charter capital of VND1 trillion.

The symbolic animals of HOSE: the bull and the bear.

The Tan Thuan Export Processing Zone is about 4 km from the city center, covering an area of 300 hectares in District 7. This is the first export processing zone in Vietnam, developed by the Management Board of Tan Thuan Export Processing Zone (Tan Thuan Co., Ltd.). Becoming operational in 2009, the project has a total investment of $1 billion, creating jobs for 60 thousand workers. Tan Thuan Export Processing Zone has nearly 150 enterprises, mainly joint ventures with Japan, Taiwan and Korea.

Quang Trung Software Park was established in 2001. It is one of the key projects for the development plan of HCM City. Located on an area of over 430.000m2, Quang Trung Software Park is divided into areas with different functions such as software production and information technology services, exhibition area, and housing and entertainment park to serve IT professionals.