New-Generation FDI Flows: Viet Nam as a Technology Link in South Korea’s Regional Strategy

Market View

Key points

In the first half of 2026, Viet Nam’s foreign direct investment attraction recorded positive signals in both scale and quality. According to published data, as of June 30, 2026, total registered foreign investment in Viet Nam reached USD 34.65 billion, up 61% year-on-year and close to the total amount attracted in the whole of 2025. June alone contributed nearly USD 10 billion in newly registered capital, suggesting that the increase did not come from only a few isolated transactions, but reflected a stronger movement of international capital into the Vietnamese market.

The capital structure also shows notable momentum. Viet Nam recorded more than 2,000 newly licensed projects with total capital of USD 17.3 billion, a sharp increase in capital scale compared with the same period. Actual disbursement reached approximately USD 13 billion, up 11.2% and the highest level in five years for the first-half period. Although Singapore led in total registered capital with around USD 7.3 billion, South Korea remained a prominent investor with more than USD 5.4 billion, continuing to affirm its role as a strategic investor in Viet Nam.

From attracting capital to selecting capability

The key point is not only the number. After many years as a production destination for major corporations, Viet Nam is now seeing a new generation of FDI with higher technological content and deeper supply-chain linkages. Investment policy is also moving in this direction. Resolution No. 10-NQ/TW on the development of the foreign-invested economic sector emphasizes selective investment attraction, prioritizing high-tech projects, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, research and development, renewable energy and sectors that can make substantive contributions to domestic production capacity. This marks a shift from “attracting capital” to “selecting capability”.

The imprint of South Korean corporations is clear in this trend. Samsung has announced plans to invest an additional USD 1 billion in 2026, bringing its accumulated investment in Viet Nam to around USD 25 billion. In Hai Phong, LG Innotek received an investment licence for a USD 1 billion semiconductor package substrate factory at Nam Dinh Vu Industrial Park, within the Dinh Vu – Cat Hai Economic Zone. This project is notable not only for its capital scale, but also because its products serve next-generation telecommunications and artificial intelligence devices.

The technology imprint of South Korean enterprises

In Bac Ninh, TLB Vina is developing a second factory at Yen Phong II-C Industrial Park to expand printed circuit board production capacity for high-performance memory modules. Dowoo Insys is investing further in Thai Nguyen in ultra-thin glass for mobile devices, while AMC Robotics has chosen Bac Ninh as a long-term operating base for smart robotic equipment. These projects differ in scale, but they point to the same trend: Viet Nam is increasingly viewed as a location capable of receiving higher-value technical processes, rather than only final assembly.

Another example is the cooperation agreement between Masan High-Tech Materials and South Korea’s GB Innovation in the tungsten materials supply chain. Under the agreement, tungsten concentrate mined in South Korea will be transported to the plant in Thai Nguyen for deep processing into ammonium paratungstate and tungsten oxide, serving sectors such as semiconductors, aviation and defence. This type of cooperation demonstrates Viet Nam’s new role in the technology-materials chain: not only as a recipient of investment, but also as a location for processing, upgrading and connecting higher-value midstream stages.

A more competitive local investment map

At the local level, competition to attract FDI is also entering a more substantive stage. Bac Ninh continues to stand out thanks to its established electronics and supporting-industry base. Hai Phong is using its seaport, economic zone and LG ecosystem to attract further technology projects. Thai Nguyen holds a position in the electronics and materials chain, while Ha Tinh is proactively approaching South Korean enterprises in supporting industries, biotechnology and logistics. For investors, the location-selection map is therefore becoming more layered: the question is no longer only “which province offers incentives”, but “which locality has the right labour, infrastructure, suppliers and processing speed for the project”.

South Korean capital flows in 2026 also show an important reality: as high-tech projects relocate, implementation requirements in Viet Nam will become stricter. Businesses need to prepare early in relation to clean land, licences, technical standards, skilled labour, logistics, power supply, environmental treatment and the ability to connect with local partners. A large-capital project that moves slowly may lose its timing advantage. Conversely, a project prepared properly from the beginning can make better use of policy changes and the supply-chain relocation wave.

Overall, the first half of 2026 is not only a period of FDI growth in numerical terms. It is also a sign that Viet Nam is being repositioned in the regional strategy of South Korean corporations and international investors. If Viet Nam’s main advantages were previously associated with competitive costs and manufacturing location, the story has now expanded to technology, materials, supply chains, technical labour and project execution capacity. In this context, opportunities remain substantial, but the advantage will belong to investors who understand the market correctly, choose the right point of entry and prepare deeply enough before moving fast enough.

Compiled sources: Tuoi Tre Newspaper, VnEconomy, Vietnam Financial Times, Thuong Hieu & Cong Luan, Vietnam Investment Review, Journal of Economics and Finance, VOV - Voice of Viet Nam, VietnamFinance, Government News, Doanh Nhan Cong Ly,, and other relevant economic press sources.