Exports

This morning's Financial Times had an interesting article comparing the responses of the major Asian economies to the financial crisis. It noted:

"Fortunately, Vietnamese exports have been fairly resilient. While economies such as Singapore and Taiwan have seen declines of 30 or 40 per cent in shipments, Vietnam was down a modest 3.7 per cent in the first four months of this year against the same period in 2008. Economists think Vietnam might be benefiting from a new Wal-Mart effect by which western consumers switch from expensive branded products to cheaper goods in which countries such as Vietnam excel. Last month, the port at Ho Chi Minh City was so busy it was backed up with ships. “They’re not producing i-Pods and laptops; they’re producing T-shirts and shoes,” says Jonathan Pinkus of Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government."