Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung called on India's top businessmen Thursday to invest in his country to cement ties between the two nations.
A fast-growing economy, a vibrant youth population and low labor costs were key reasons to look toward Vietnam, Dung told more than 300 Indian and Vietnamese industry leaders at a Mumbai conference.
"I would like to tell the Indian business delegation to please come to Vietnam because it is a safe and effective destination for their investment," he said, adding that the economy was growing at between 7.5 to 8 percent a year over the past three years.
Vietnam's economy has grown from $45 billion in 2004 to $60 billion last year.
Dung said foreign direct investments totaling $10 billion came in to Vietnam last year and $5 billion had already been committed in the first six months of this year.
"Two-way trade has increased by 20-30 percent per year since 2001 and with recent projects by Essar and Tata in Vietnam, India has become one of the top 10 countries investing in Vietnam," he said.
Trade between India and Vietnam rose to $1 billion in 2006 from $72 million in 1995.
Tata Steel Ltd. signed an agreement in May with Vietnam's largest steel company to build a 4.5 million ton steel plant in Ha Tinh province, central Vietnam. The agreement with Vietnam Steel Corp. also entitles Tata Steel to a 30 percent equity stake in an iron ore mining project in Vietnam's Thach Khe area.
Earlier, India's Essar group signed an agreement to build a steel mill in Ba Tia - Vung Tau.
Dung said that Vietnam was emerging as a big market since 70 percent of the 85 million population was under 40 years old.
India's leading education group Aptech Ltd. signed a deal Thursday with FPT of Vietnam, a top information technology corporation, to open 20 new software and multimedia training centers there by next year. Aptech estimated revenue from the education business in Vietnam from 2007-2009 would be more than $30 million.
Dung is in India on a three-day visit - the first time in a decade that a Vietnamese prime minister has come to India.
Along with a 172-member Vietnamese delegation, Dung visited a Tata Steel plant in eastern India's Jamshedpur on Wednesday. He will travel to New Delhi on Thursday where he will meet Indian leaders and is expected to sign agreements to boost cooperation in agriculture, fisheries and shipping.
