Vietnam emerges as key hub for Japanese companies’ ASEAN diversification

Manufacturers have invested in advanced equipment and other sectors in Vietnam due in part to Japanese government subsidies to help companies exit China and to diversify production across Southeast Asia, Matsumoto Nobuyuki, JETRO’s chief representative, said in an interview with Nikkei Asia.

A recent poll by JETRO found that 60% of Japanese investors in the Asia-Pacific region said they plan to expand operations in Vietnam within the next two years.

The rate is the highest in ASEAN and third in the Asia-Pacific region only after India and Bangladesh.

He interpreted the latest rise in Japanese interest in Vietnam as an indication that Japanese factories are increasingly exporting not just to their home market but also to the West.

“Their businesses are changing,” he said. “They are reconstructing global supply chains.”