Tokyo (VNA) – Japan ’s Asahi newspaper said on Mar. 20 that Viet Nam ’s real estate market has developed strongly and become more attractive to foreign investors.

The demand for housing, offices and restaurants for lease in Viet Nam will see rapid increase as the country’s economy is expected to achieve an average annual growth rate of about 8 percent in the next decade. Viet Nam ’s entry into the World Trade Organisation (WTO) will provide a driving force for its economic development, the paper said.

The joint-stock IndoChina Land company, which has invested one billion USD in Viet Nam ’s real estate market in the past ten years, plans to inject additional one billion USD into new projects in the future.

IndoChina Land ’s office manager Rick Mayor-Smith said the company plans to invest in building offices and apartment buildings in the next 18-24 months. Viet Nam ’s high economic growth rate has helped accelerate the development of the country’s real estate market, he said.

Meanwhile, Singapore ’s third largest real estate development company Keppel Land has established a joint venture in Viet Nam to build 1,600 apartments with total investment capital of 106 billion USD. The Banyan Tree Holdings has intended investing 270 million USD in building a resort in central Da Nang city.

The paper quoted Peter Mitchell, Chief Executive Officer of the Asian Public Real Estate Association, as saying that Viet Nam is a symbol of the growth and a motive force for other Asian economies.-Enditem