Singapore’s Keppel aims to invest in Vietnam amid 'China plus one' shift

The Keppel Corporation in Singapore is tapping emerging markets such as Vietnam for growth. Vietnam is emerging as a manufacturing hub for investors who are looking to diversify from China. Loh Chin Hua, Keppel’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), told Nikkei Asia in an interview that businesses have been embracing the “China plus one” strategy. The strategy avoids investing only in China and seeks alternative destinations to reduce concentration risks. Loh Chin Hua said, “There’s a lot of activities, manufacturing, where a number of these multinationals, especially tech companies, have started into Vietnam, looking at Vietnam as a possible manufacturing base.” He further stated that the firm anticipates it is in a very good position to make even more investments in that nation. The “China plus one” strategy picked up when US-China trade tensions increased during the tenure of US President Donald Trump. During the COVID-19 pandemic, China’s harsh lockdown policies necessitated investors to rethink depending too much on the world’s second-largest economy. The corporation’s Keppel Land unit notified last year that its subsidiary Keppel Land Vietnam Properties had made a deal with Vietnam’s Phu Long Real Estates Joint Stock Company and its An Khanh New City Development Joint Venture unit. With this, Keppel acquired a 49 per cent interest in three residential land plots. Located in Hanoi, the company acquired the land for 159.7 million Singapore dollars ($118 million). Keppel and its Vietnam partner are planning to develop around 1,260 residences, comprising more than 1,000 condominium units and over 200 detached homes for nearly 680 million Singapore dollars ($502.2 million). This project is a part of Mailand Hanoi City. Loh Chin Hua said that Keppel also sees a lot of opportunities in Vietnam in terms of the energy transition. He added that they are also looking at possibilities of waste-to-energy business in Vietnam and data centres. Apart from Vietnam, Keppel is aiming at markets in the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for new assets. Loh Chin Hua stated that countries such as Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia have also benefitted from rapid urbanisation. According to him, the nations have also benefitted from increasing affluence. The CEO believes that there are good opportunities for business and investments in the ASEAN market. Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.