The changes in policies being pursued by US President Donald Trump will have an impact on the pockets of Vietnamese billionaires.

While global trade policies take place among the world’s powerful economies, small economies like Vietnam have to sustain enormous impact from the shifts in policies.

With the eagerly anticipated conclusion of talks on the Comprehensive Partnership and Trans-Pacific Partnership’s (CPTPP) in late January, Vietnam embarked on a still more difficult path. 

One significant aspect of the deal that may supersede the TPP is the removal of provisions relating to intellectual property.

With Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, Vietnam will miss many benefits it once expected to get.

If Vietnamese textile and garment companies cannot organize fabric production, the industry will have to import 15 out of 18 billion square meters of fabric it needs by 2025. If so, Vietnam will forever do outsourcing for foreign companies. 

A number of yarn, weaving and dyeing projects have restarted after a period of postponement due to the US withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). However, the textile & garment industry still faces difficulties.

VietNamNet Bridge - Vietnam still has great opportunities if it joins TPP, but instead of focusing too heavily on trade agreements like the TPP, Vietnam needs to strengthen internal resources, experts say.

VietNamNet Bridge - Garment companies have yet to feel the pressure from the 4.0 industrial revolution, which is expected to replace many workers with robots as automation becomes more widespread. 

Vietnam has joined or completed negotiations for 11 free trade agreements (FTAs), bilateral and multilateral, not including the TPP, according to former Minister of Trade Truong Dinh Tuyen.

VietNamNet Bridge - Restructuring the textile and garment industry involves drawing up a new development strategy, using new technologies, and closing fiber and textile factories that use outdated technologies. 

VietNamnet Bridge - Vietnamese underwear enterprises are dying slowly because they cannot compete with smuggled cheap Chinese products with false labels of origin. 

VietNamNet Bridge - $10.2 billion is the total value of US foreign direct investment (FDI) in Vietnam, but the figure does not represent everything the US contributes.  

VietNamNet Bridge - Economists agree that Vietnam needs to take action to grab opportunities from a new wave of investment from the US. 

VietNamNet Bridge - The value of Vietnam’s exports to the US increased from $1 billion in 2001 to $38.46 billion in 2016, and it may reach $40 billion in 2017. 

VietNamNet Bridge - In a TPP without the US, powerful member countries will benefit most, according to economist Nguyen Tri Hieu.

Vietnam ranks third among Asian countries which have the biggest trade surpluses with the US. Should this be a concern for Vietnam?

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do Thang Hai tells the Vietnam News Agency that the nation will have to deal effectively with new-generation FTAs as it deepens its international integration.

VietNamNet Bridge - With the collapse of TPP, the textile & garment industry will have to revise its investment and development strategy.