(VOVworld)-Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee has held a celebration to mark the 40^th anniversary of Vietnam and Singapore’s diplomatic ties. Speaking at the event on Thursday, the city’s deputy mayor Le Manh Ha said he was pleased to see rapid development in bilateral ties. Two-way trade turnover reached more than 9 billion dollars last year, following the establishment of an economic cooperative agreement in 2005. Singapore now has nearly 1,100 projects worth 25 billion dollars, ranking 4^th among biggest investors in Vietnam. In Ho Chi Minh City, Singapore tops the list of foreign investors with 6 billion dollars of registered capital. Singapore Consul General Leo Siu Lin:"World politics has created a conducive atmosphere for ties to blossom. It is really at the people-to-people level that we see so much warmth and friendship between our two countries. Many Singaporeans regard Vietnam as their home and we are happy to have many Vietnamese studying and working in Singapore. At the government-to-government level we are pleased to promote people-to-people exchanges through the Singapore co-operation program. Since the program was launched in 1992, in Ho Chi Minh City, it has cooperated meaningfully to people-to-people linkages through charitable projects and events. I’m glad to note that our people-to-people exchanges are ever-growing and vibrant".