Toys are made at the Hồng Kông (China)-invested Billion Max Vietnam Co in Huế. —VNA/VNS Photo Phạm Hậu

HÀ NỘI — Foreign investment disbursements in Việt Nam rose to a five-year high in the first two months of the year, reaching US$3.21 billion as manufacturing continued to attract the bulk of capital, official data showed on Friday.

Realised foreign investment increased 8.8 per cent in January–February from a year earlier, according to the National Statistics Office of Vietnam under the Ministry of Finance.

Manufacturing remained the largest recipient of investment, drawing $2.65 billion, or 82.7 per cent of total disbursed capital. Real estate received $223.5 million, equivalent to 7 per cent, while electricity and gas production and distribution attracted $119.2 million, or 3.7 per cent.

Despite the increase in disbursed capital, newly registered foreign investment in Việt Nam fell 12.6 per cent year on year to $6.03 billion, the statistics office said.

It added that 620 new foreign-invested projects worth $3.54 billion were licensed during the period, representing an increase of 20.2 per cent in the number of projects and 61.5 per cent in registered capital compared with the same period last year.

The manufacturing sector accounted for the largest share of newly registered investment at $2.63 billion, representing 74.3 per cent of new commitments. It was followed by wholesale, retail and repair of automobiles, motorcycles and motorbikes with $358.6 million, accounting for 10.1 per cent.

Văn Đức Phú from the ministry’s Foreign Investment Agency said, the ultimate goal is not the scale of registered capital but the added value it generates and the opportunities it creates for Vietnamese companies to participate in global supply chains.

Among 44 countries and territories with newly approved projects, South Korea ranked as the largest investor with $1.34 billion, accounting for 37.8 per cent of newly registered capital. Singapore followed with $1.1 billion, ahead of China, Japan and Hong Kong.

According to the statistics office, additional capital for 180 existing foreign-invested projects fell 52 per cent year on year to $1.99 billion.

During the period, foreign investors also carried out 492 capital contribution and share purchase transactions worth $499.5 million, down 5.7 per cent from the same period last year.

A Samsung Electronics Việt Nam factory in Thái Nguyên Province. — Photo baotintuc.vn

By location, the northern province of Thái Nguyên led the country with nearly $1.7 billion in registered foreign investment in the first two months of the year. It was followed by Ho Chi Minh City with about $900 million, Bắc Ninh with $818.5 million and Hà Nội with $624.5 million.

The National Statistics Office of Vietnam noted that Thái Nguyên not only topped the country in terms of investment scale but also recorded strong growth compared with many other provinces. While major industrial centres such as Ho Chi Minh City and Bắc Ninh saw declines in foreign investment compared with the same period last year, inflows into Thái Nguyên rose sharply.

In the early months of 2026, Thái Nguyên attracted more than $4.4 billion in investment commitments from projects receiving investment decisions and cooperation memoranda. Of that total, 11 projects were granted investment approvals with combined capital of more than $1 billion, while cooperation memoranda accounted for about $3.4 billion.

Local authorities said FDI inflows into the province are increasingly shifting towards high-tech industries, manufacturing, electronics and supporting industries — sectors seen as generating higher added value and helping upgrade the industrial production chain.

Other localities in the top 10 included Tây Ninh, Hà Tĩnh, Đồng Nai, Hưng Yên, Hải Phòng and Huế.

Combined, the top 10 provinces and cities accounted for about $5.65 billion, or roughly 94 per cent of total registered investment nationwide in the first two months of the year. — VNS