This is higher than the 20-30 percent average growth seen in other localities in southern and northern Vietnam, Le Trong Hieu, director of office, industrial and logistics service of CBRE Vietnam said at a recent forum.

In HCMC, third quarter rents for industrial real estate was $300 per square meter for 30-45 years.

Some other southern localities with strong increases in industrial land rents included Dong Nai Province, up 55 percent year-on-year to $155 and Long An Province, up 80 percent to $200.

Corresponding third quarter rent in Hanoi was $260 up 1.7 times year-on-year. The northern province of Bac Giang saw its industrial land rent double to $110.

Hieu said that these “unprecedented” growth rates have been triggered by surging demand and limited supply.

He said that in the last 12 months there has been increasing demand in the electronics, e-commerce, husbandry food and fast-moving consumer goods sectors. Major international companies have established their presence in Vietnam and are expanding, he added.

Some auto assemblers are also looking expand in the central region, he said.

Experts have said that increasing investment by the Vietnamese government in transport infrastructure, effective handling of the Covid-19 pandemic and U.S.-China trade tensions have encouraged manufacturers to look to Vietnam as an investment destination as they seek to diversify their supply chains.

The trade pacts that Vietnam has signed and investment incentives that it is offering also contribute to rising demand.

There were 279 operational industrial parks in Vietnam in the first nine months with an occupancy of 71.1 percent. They created jobs for about 383 million workers, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

Another 87 parks are under construction.