Word: vietnamization
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...Even if the China dreams don't pan out, there are other nearby markets to tap. A free-trade agreement among the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) recently reduced tariffs on electronic goods, previously as high as 30%, to zero. That gave Vietnam's electronics manufacturers greater access to a trading bloc of half a billion people. "We can be the gateway for export to China," boasts Hoang Van Dung, vice president of Vietnam's Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Hanoi, "And we can export to ASEAN and the West at the same time...
...biggest maker of computer microprocessors, announced plans to construct a $300 million chip-assembly and testing facility in Saigon. North or south, there appears to be plenty of business to go around. While the world debates whether China or India will become the economic leader of the developing world, Vietnam is seen as an opportunity for companies to diversify their manufacturing base. The country boasts one of the world's highest literacy rates, a young labor force that adds a million new workers each year and a growing internal market. "Vietnam is trying to position itself as 'If not China...
...Still, the bullish investment is offset by common developing-country woes. Infrastructure hasn't kept pace with growth; electricity, telecommunications and port fees are relatively costly. Last summer, a drought in the north reduced hydroelectric generation and the government was forced to implement rolling power outages. Vietnam still hasn't developed support industries to supply parts and services to factories, forcing them to import parts and expertise. Meanwhile, restrictive labor laws make it virtually impossible to fire unproductive workers, and managers in foreign-owned factories complain about pervasive government corruption and interference. In January, Hanoi abruptly decreed that the minimum...
...biggest shadow over Vietnam's rising star, though, is its long-delayed entry into the World Trade Organization. Vietnamese-made garments, the country's second largest export earner (after crude oil), are still hamstrung in the important U.S. market by quotas that don't apply to most WTO members. If Vietnam can gain entry, as is expected, this year or next, garment exports are projected to double to $10 billion by 2010. Vietnam is already the world's largest pepper exporter, and the second largest exporter of rice, cashews and coffee. "Now that it's getting attention, Vietnam...
...congress, an eight-day leadership conference held once every five years, opened in Hanoi with the political élite promising to accelerate economic reforms and tackle corruption. But it remains to be seen whether bureaucrats will be able to change. "People used to joke in the late 1990s that Vietnam never misses an opportunity to miss an opportunity," says Fred Burke, managing partner of the U.S. law firm Baker & McKenzie. "I hope it won't be true this time." Workers like Nhan, who is going to work in the new Canon factory, are vowing to do their bit. "People...