HCM CITY — From the beginning of 2026 to mid-August, export processing and industrial zones in the southern economic hub attracted more than US$5.14 billion poured into new and existing investment projects, exceeding the full-year target by 21 per cent, reported the HCM City Exporting Processing and Industrial Zones Authority (HEPZA).

HEPZA said foreign direct investment (FDI) channeled into 87 newly licensed and 105 existing projects stood at nearly $3.2 billion and $878.4 million, respectively, surpassing over $4 billion in total.

FDI inflows have not only come from new projects but also from existing businesses scaling up their investments. This demonstrates that alongside their ability to attract new investors, the local export processing and industrial zones continue to create favourable conditions for existing enterprises to expand their production and business activities.

Domestic investment, meanwhile, exceeded $28.6 trillion, equivalent to over $1.1 billion. Of this, 74 newly licensed projects posted a total registered capital of more than $10 trillion, while 44 projects registered capital increases worth over $18.5 trillion.

Alongside investment attraction, land and factory leasing activities have also continued to perform at a high level. Specifically, in nearly eight months, 673.4 ha of land was leased while the area of rented factory space reached approximately 483,977 sq.m.

According to HEPZA, as of mid-August, the city’s export processing and industrial zones were home to more than 5,410 valid investment projects, with combined registered capital surpassing $81.7 billion. Of these, more than 3,220 were FDI projects worth over $60 billion, and 2,187 were domestic ones worth VNĐ399.2 trillion, equivalent to $21.7 billion.

Notably, of the more than 5,410 valid projects, 4,850 were already operational. In addition, 150 projects were under construction, 326 were undergoing procedures required for implementation, and 85 temporarily suspended operations.

The workforce employed in the city’s export processing and industrial zones stood at 919,446, with women accounting for 53.51 per cent and workers from other localities about 68.3 per cent of the total. — VNA/VNS