Politics

Workers turn out face masks in Hai Duong, Vietnam. Some U.S. policies benefit Vietnamese exports, such as a program that connects local businesses to global companies.
Trade

Vietnam shows limits of Trump's 'Buy American' rhetoric

Bid to reshore jobs hits wall as companies seek diverse supply chains

28 October 2020
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, center left, and his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc feed the fish by a pond at the presidential palace compound in Hanoi on Oct. 19.
Business trends

Japan's investment in Vietnam plummets while Suga seeks closer ties

South Korea and China fill gap left by 40% drop this year

22 October 2020
Thai protesters defiantly throw up a three-finger salute, their demonstrations part of a regional pattern of instability. The World Bank terms it a "third shock," coming on the heels of both the pandemic and the cost of containing it.
The Big Story

Thai protests build as pandemic fuels unrest across Southeast Asia

How COVID aggravated inequality and triggered political reckoning across the region

21 October 2020
Yoshihide Suga and Nguyen Xuan Phuc address reporters after agreeing to expand their border reopenings for business travelers.
International relations

Japan and Vietnam agree to accelerate business reopenings

Yoshihide Suga becomes first leader from major economy to visit post-COVID Hanoi

19 October 2020
Japan has been promoting its P-1 patrol plane, like this one, and the C-2 transport plane abroad. (Photo by Tim Felce)
Aerospace & Defense Industries

In Indo-Pacific push, Japan to export arms to Vietnam

Suga to sign deal on maiden visit to Southeast Asia as prime minister

14 October 2020
It started as U.S. government pressure on American companies to boycott specific Chinese entities. Now, that effort has widened to become a wholesale blockade of Chinese technology. 
The Big Story

Inside the US campaign to cut China out of the tech supply chain

Apple, Google and others shift production to prepare for 'decoupled' global market

7 October 2020
Vietnam illustrates an economy led by manufacturers and digital elements. (Source photo by Reuters) 
Economy

Vietnam seeks 6.5% growth through 2025 after missing current goal

Hanoi eyes regional supply chains after pandemic derailed GDP target for 2016-20

5 October 2020
Suga plans to visit Vietnam and Indonesia in mid-October in his first overseas trip since taking office. (Source photos by Reuters and Nikkei)
International relations

Suga to take up Abe's Indo-Pacific mantle with ASEAN tour

Japan's new leader plans first overseas trip to Vietnam and Indonesia

1 October 2020
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte speaks in a pre-recorded message that was played during the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 22.
International relations

Asian leaders hedge bets at UN as Trump throws barbs at China

'When elephants fight, it is the grass that gets trampled flat,' Duterte warns

28 September 2020
Startups in Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park are exempted from land leases for 50 years. (Source photo by Reuters)
Economy

Vietnam to drive high-tech startups with new incentives

After COVID, Hanoi aims to boost country's growth potential

24 September 2020
The Mekong river divides Thailand and Laos as seen from Nong Khai, Thailand. The five countries that the river runs through find themselves the beneficiaries of U.S. and Chinese largesse.
International relations

US and China vie to corral ASEAN with Mekong and COVID support

Washington announces $153m package for basin amid tensions with Beijing

12 September 2020
TikTok, the international version of ByteDance's short video app, has, like telecom hardware maker Huawei, raised concerns internationally. But its "soft power" potential makes it unique. (Illustration by Nakako Shiotsuki)
Business Spotlight

Asia's divide over TikTok: troubled in Tokyo, chilled in Manila

Reactions to security fears after US crackdown on app reflect relations with China

11 September 2020
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, center, speaks during an online meeting with ASEAN foreign ministers hosted by Vietnam on Sept. 10.
Coronavirus

US to open regional CDC office in Vietnam to tackle COVID-19

Washington steps up commitment to ASEAN public health amid Beijing tensions

10 September 2020
Images taken from video provided by VTV show Association of Southeast Asian Nations' foreign ministers remotely watching Vietnamese counterpart Pham Binh Minh, center, deliver a speech in Hanoi, Vietnam, during the opening of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting on  Sept. 9.
South China Sea

Vietnam stresses South China Sea security issues at ASEAN meeting

Draft communique calls for joint work on COVID vaccine development and delivery

9 September 2020
A Chinese guided-missile frigate: The ASEAN meetings take place against the backdrop of mounting tensions in the South China Sea.
International relations

Sino-US tug of war looms large in ASEAN meetings

China to use promise of coronavirus vaccine to sway members to its side

8 September 2020
A casino dealer collects chips at a roulette table in Manila. Chinese account for a fifth of foreign visitors to the Philippines.
Travel & Leisure

China's foreign casino ban risks snake eyes for Vietnam and rivals

Macao stands to lure high rollers from destinations like Philippines and Singapore

7 September 2020
Economic Ministers from the 15 countries taking part in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership talks met online on Aug. 27. (Photo courtesy of the ASEAN Secretariat/Kusuma Pandu Wijaya)
Trade

India's absence looms over 'progress' on RCEP Asian trade deal

Members aim to sign pact at November summit, but New Delhi stays aloof

27 August 2020
India pulled out of the RCEP negotiations over concerns that the pact would hurt the South Asian country's domestic producers. (Nikkei montage/source photos by Reuters and Rie Ishii)
Trade

Talks on Asian trade megadeal RCEP resume in COVID shadow

India likely to remain absent as Vietnam leads push for year-end agreement

26 August 2020
The Subi Reef, a part of the Spratly Islands, pictured in May 2018: China has intensified its attempts to strengthen its claims to the South China Sea.
Opinion

Southeast Asia stands to gain as US hardens South China Sea stance

Region welcomes US support for UN tribunal ruling rejecting China's maritime claims

17 August 2020
Vaccine development in a Russian lab: While Moscow sees limited sales prospects in Western markets, it views Asia as "promising."
Coronavirus

Russia aims COVID vaccine at Asian buyers beyond Philippines

Vietnam and others eye Sputnik V doses as scientists spar over safety

15 August 2020
Health care workers talk to a Hanoi resident near the house of a coronavirus patient as they investigate infection links on July 30. 
Coronavirus

Vietnam tries new local lockdowns to stop COVID but not economy

PM Phuc balances case counts with business activity in new coronavirus wave

7 August 2020
A woman wears a mask as she drives past a banner promoting coronavirus prevention in Hanoi on July 31. 
Coronavirus

Vietnam fights new COVID-19 strain with higher infection rate

Hospitals mobilized in Danang, while Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh conduct mass testing

3 August 2020
A family at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi on July 28: The country is on high alert as both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have detected locally transmitted COVID-19 cases.
Coronavirus

Virus success story Vietnam braces for new wave of COVID-19

Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh on high alert after cases pop up

30 July 2020
Vietnamese border guards wear masks at the Huu Nghi crossing with China on Feb. 20.
Coronavirus

Vietnam tightens border control as new coronavirus cases emerge

Prime minister calls for immediate prosecution of undocumented immigrants

27 July 2020
The China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, which has 57 founding member states, is making its first loan to Vietnam, as Beijing looks to further its Belt and Road Initiative, analysts said. 
Belt and Road

AIIB makes first loan to Vietnam bank amid South China Sea tensions

Bank's $100m offer to VP Bank is Beijing's olive branch to Hanoi, analyst says

24 July 2020