HANOI, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Foreign direct investment (FDI) into Vietnam dropped 10.4 percent to $9 billion in the first 11 months of 2009 from the same period a year before, the government said on Friday.
New pledges between January and November reached $19.7 billion, near the country's annual target of $20 billion.
FDI in the red-hot property development sector totalled $5.9 billion, the government said.
The United States ranked as the biggest foreign investor in Vietnam with total pledges of $8.1 billion, the report said.
Foreign investment inflows, along with overseas remittances, are a key source of foreign exchange, helping Vietnam offset its trade deficit.
(Reporting by Nguyen Nhat Lam; Editing by Kim Coghill)
((nhatlam.nguyen@thomsonreuters.com; +844 3825 9623; Reuters
Messaging: nhatlam.nguyen.reuters.com@thomsonreuters.net)) reuters lam Keywords: VIETNAM ECONOMY/FDI
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