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April 25, Vancouver

Employs 1,985 professionals.

45 offices; a presence in 24 countries.

5,000 customer relationships.

$54 billion in total assets.

$71 billion assets under management.

Foreign Exchange

With its admission to the World Trade Organization late last year, Vietnam has stepped up in the ranks of developing economies. With WTO membership, the Southeast Asian nation gains access to more international trade and must adopt new market-access rules that will make it more attractive to foreign investors.

Vietnam Economic Indicators

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 Annual GDP Growth 7.08% 7.34% 7.79% 8.43% 7.9% 7.2% 7.4% Foreign Direct Investment $1.4% $1.45% $1.61% $1.9% $2.85% $3.1% $3.3% (billions of $ U.S.) (estimates) Source: Economist Intelligence Unit

 

Not that Vietnam has not been on the development map. Since normalization of relations with the United States in the 1990s, the country has attracted foreign multinationals, including Intel Corp., which is building its largest chip fabrication facility outside the U.S. in Vietnam. The Vietnamese economy has been expanding at more than 7% annually in recent years and a rapidly growing middle class is ready for new housing and retail development; the WTO agreement removes barriers to imported consumer goods, too.

According to a recent report by the Mortgage Bankers Assn., Vietnamese government officials estimate that more than $1 billion of FDI spent in the first quarter of 2007 went into 196 commercial real estate projects and 109 existing projects, a 60% increase compared to 2006. Some of the biggest opportunities will be in the office sector, where there is a shortage of Class A space, according to Jones Lang LaSalle, which recently opened up its first office in Vietnam.

Vietnam does present challenges for Western investors, however. Like China, it is a rapidly industrializing economy that is welcoming foreign capital, but is still ruled by a communist regime. In Vietnam, for example, all land is owned by the people and is available only on long-term lease. The Vietnamese business climate is famous for its corruption and scored dead last in Jones Lang LaSalle’s ranking of 56 nations for investor transparency.

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