Economy

28 May 2025
Container ships at Jakarta International Container Terminal. Southeast Asian countries are offering to buy more U.S. products in tariff negotiations with Washington. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
Delegations from China, India, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam and Taiwan were among those from Asian economies at the SelectUSA Investment Summit in Maryland in mid-May. (Photo by Azusa Kawakami)
Trump tariffs

Trump tariffs keep Asian firms on sidelines at US investment summit

Companies express interest and gather information as they wait for trade deals

22 May 2025
The main terminal of Long Thanh International Airport under construction. It is set to be a main transportation hub for southern Vietnam. (Photo courtesy of Airports Corporation of Vietnam)
Economy

Vietnam plans $20bn loan package for infrastructure and technology

Vietcom, BIDV and other banks boost growth drivers amid Trump turbulence

9 May 2025
From left: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and U.S. President Donald Trump. Washington's tariff policy is overshadowing the world's economies. (Source photos by Reuters)
Comment

Trump-driven disorder rattles emerging economies

Countries reel from misjudging risks of new US president

6 May 2025
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Economy

Vietnam's dramatic growth over 50 years

GDP grew 51-fold from 1994, with Apple and Samsung being major driving forces

5 May 2025
Vietnam's exports to the U.S. grew by nearly one-third on the year in March, before the "reciprocal" tariffs were announced.
Trump tariffs

Malaysia, Vietnam drove rush of exports to US ahead of tariffs

Full-year results in doubt as Southeast Asian nations frontload shipments

1 May 2025
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, left, and his Vietnamese counterpart, Pham Minh Chinh, walk during a welcoming ceremony in Hanoi on April 28.
Trump tariffs

Japanese PM Ishiba champions free trade in Southeast Asia visit

Trip follows Trump tariff shock and Xi's visit to ASEAN countries

28 April 2025
A dragon mosaic at Lego's new Vietnam factory was made from 730,000 Lego bricks and took 3,100 hours to build. (Photo by Nguyen Van Anh)
Supply Chain

Lego goes local with Vietnam and US plants to curb tariff risks

Despite cost of supply chain rework, CEO stresses production 'close to consumers'

27 April 2025
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Podcast: News Roundup

Vietnam's state restructuring drive brings hope and concern

Tune in to Nikkei Asia's podcast, bringing the region's key news to global listeners

25 April 2025
As Donald Trump begins to backpedal on his tariff gambit, stocks in much of Asia are rebounding. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Reuters, Shinya Sawai, and Kosaku Mimura)
Equities

Asian stocks rebound from Trump 'Liberation Day' shock stronger than US

India, South Korea and Japan show resilience while Vietnam remains vulnerable

24 April 2025
A factory of Chinese solar cell maker Jinko Solar sits in a Vietnamese industrial park. The U.S. recently announced plans for steep tariffs on solar panels exported from Vietnam. (Photo by Yuji Nitta)
Trump tariffs

Vietnam, South Korea crack down on Chinese goods skirting U.S. tariffs

Both Asian countries maneuver amid trade negotiations with Washington

24 April 2025
Vietnam’s Communist Party General Secretary To Lam, right, poses with Chinese President Xi Jinping during their meeting in Hanoi on April 14. (Pool via Reuters)
Comment

How tariff-hit Vietnam could signal dawn of a post-U.S. Asia

Trump's erratic policies nudge Hanoi toward Beijing

20 April 2025
Vietnamese General Secretary of the Communist Party To Lam, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping review the guard of honor at the Presidential Palace in Hanoi, the first stop on Xi's five-day, three-nation Southeast Asian tour.
Trump tariffs

Southeast Asian nations face 'recalibration' challenge after Xi tour

As Pax Americana ends, China moves swiftly to fill regional void

18 April 2025
Vietnam wants to raise its total installed power capacity to a range of 183 to 236 gigawatts by 2030, up from more than 80 GW at the end of 2023.
Energy

Vietnam adds nuclear to $136bn plan to boost power capacity

The country's first nuclear power plants to come online in 2030-2035

17 April 2025
As a net importer from China and net exporter to the U.S., ASEAN finds itself hemmed in by the trade war between the world's two largest economies. (Illustration by Yoshiko Kawano)
ASEAN Money

ASEAN struggles to boost regional trade amid Trump tariff threat

U.S. policy renews urgency to deepen economic ties within Southeast Asian bloc

15 April 2025
Ahn Duk-geun, South Korea's industry minister, is visiting Vietnam as the two countries scramble to mitigate the impact of threatened U.S. tariffs.
Trump tariffs

South Korea, Vietnam agree to boost ties as U.S. tariffs loom

Two countries agree action plan to expand bilateral trade to $150bn by 2030

14 April 2025
Apple is attempting to make more MacBooks in Vietnam to avoid the pain of U.S. tariffs on goods made in China. 
Technology

Apple ramps up India, Vietnam production as tariff safe harbors

Tech giant faces stricter Chinese customs checks as it transfers equipment

14 April 2025
A container ship being guided by tugs at Jakarta port. Companies are reporting an increase in transpacific orders during the Trump administration's 90-day pause in the highter reciprocal tariffs. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
Trade war

U.S. and Southeast Asian companies rush to beat 90-day tariff deadline

Executives and shippers expect surge in transpacific shipments to be shortlived

11 April 2025
Meiko will produce tiny, power-saving three-dimensional PCBs in Vietnam to supply to Apple's iPhone assembly plants in India.(Nikkei montage/Source photos by Satoko Kawasaki and Meiko)
Electronics

Japan's Meiko to build new plant in Vietnam for iPhone parts

New facility will supply PCBs for iPhone plant in India as Apple turns away from China

10 April 2025
Finance ministers and central bank governors are concluding a two-day meeting in Kuala Lumpur, on April 10. The bloc's trade ministers are also meeting on Thursday to discuss ASEAN's response to the U.S. tariff increases.
Trade war

Asian governments, businesses cautious on Trump tariff pause

Officials and executives warn remaining duties will still hit global economy

10 April 2025
Rice farmers protest against falling prices in Bangkok in March. (Photo by Kosuke Inoue)
Agriculture

Southeast Asian rice farmers struggle against Indian exports

Oversupply drags down Thai and Vietnamese export prices more than 30%

10 April 2025
Companies like Vietnam's Song Hong Garment that supply clothes to Walmart could be hit hard by the new U.S. tariffs.
Trump tariffs

Trump tariffs threaten low-cost Southeast Asia manufacturers

Fishery and apparel companies in Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia rely on cheap labor

8 April 2025
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, right, hosts Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto in Kuala Lumpur on April 6 to discuss regional issues. (Government of Malaysia)
Trade war

Malaysia to seek united ASEAN response to U.S. reciprocal tariffs

Bloc's economic ministers to meet Thursday to discuss collective approach

7 April 2025
Shipping containers are loaded to a ship at a port in Hai Phong city in Vietnam.
Economy

Vietnam GDP slowed in first quarter ahead of Trump's tariffs

Economy expanded 6.93% in January-March quarter, down from 7.55% in Q4

6 April 2025
To Lam, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam.
Trump tariffs

Vietnam willing to cut tariffs on U.S., Trump says after 'productive call'

Nike and Lululemon shares higher following news of talk with General Secretary To Lam

5 April 2025
Thailand had become a popular alternative to China as a production base for Japanese manufacturers. (Photo by Kenya Akama)
Trade war

Trump tariffs leave Japan manufacturers in Thailand, Vietnam scrambling

'China plus one' strategy adopted after last trade war backfires with new duties

5 April 2025
Few question whether Vietnam would benefit from less bureaucracy and red tape. Yet while the current government restructuring offers the promise of an environment more favorable for investment and entrepreneurship, observers are cautious about the outlook for its success. (Illustration by Yoshiko Kawano)
Policy Asia

Vietnam trumps DOGE with 'urgent' state restructuring

To Lam slashes bureaucracy in quest to boost economic growth

4 April 2025
The ASEAN flag and those of its member states are displayed at a ministerial meeting in Malaysia in January. Southeast Asian nations are among the hardest hit by new U.S. tariffs
Trade war

ASEAN advised to deepen regional trade after Trump tariffs

Southeast Asia should also strengthen ties with Europe, India and the Gulf, analysts say

3 April 2025
Nicholas Wong and his partner Su Wen, pictured with three cats at their home just outside Kuala Lumpur, are among Asia's growing legion of pet lovers. Experts say domestic animals have become more popular both in countries with growing populations and those with sliding birth rates. (Photo by Norman Goh)
Big in Asia

Asia's pet boom lets food, health care, tech players off leash

Pet 'humanization' drives world-beating growth; post-pandemic companionship appeal rises

29 March 2025
Most of Vingroup's $30 billion investment in energy infrastructure will go toward renewables, such as wind power. (Photo by Yuji Nitta)
Energy

Vingroup to pour up to $30bn into renewables, LNG power in Vietnam

Nation's leading conglomerate looks to build out energy infrastructure

27 March 2025