Vietnam Weekly - July 5, 2019
It's a wild time to be following international trade developments related to Vietnam, as one day you can read an article titled 'Vietnam shapes as a key winner from the US-China trade war,' and the next find one with the headline'Vietnam's 36% export surge to US draws scrutiny and tariffs.' Are they winning? Starting to lose? Somewhere in between?
I don't think anyone really knows right now, especially given the, um, capricious nature of President Trump. The US Commerce Department did take one shot at Vietnam this week, levying tariffs of nearly 450% on certain steel products shipped from South Korea and Taiwan to the Southeast Asian country for minor processing before being sent on to the US.
This doesn't seem to be quite as apocalyptic as some headlines made it out to be, but the threat of further action isn't going away. The Vietnamese government has already responded, assuring the US that they will work to ensure companies aren't able to dodge taxes, in addition to reminding business owners to use either local materials or those sourced from countries which don't face tariffs. Officials in Hanoi aren't taking any chances.
Meanwhile, amid weeks (months?) of headlines about huge global corporations ramping up production in Vietnam, both Nikkei and VnExpress have good articles on how some major apparel manufacturers are slowing expansion and looking to cheaper countries like Indonesia, since tech manufacturers are snapping up qualified workers and increasing land prices in industrial zones.
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