Vietnam Jan FDI inflows rise 6.8% to $1.61 bln -statistics office

HANOI, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Vietnam received $1.61 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) in January, up 6.8% from a year earlier, government data released on Saturday shows.

FDI pledges — which indicate the size of future FDI disbursements — increased 4.2% in the year to $2.1 billion, the General Statistics Office (GSO) said in a statement.

Of the pledges, 75.4% would go to manufacturing and processing, while 11.3% are to be invested in gas, water and electricity distribution, the GSO said.

Singapore was the top source of FDI pledges in the period, followed by Hong Kong and France. (Editing by William Mallard)