Today was all about economics on various scales: from broad geopolitical trends to local port logistics to bartering at a local market. We started the day with a visit to Cat Lai terminal, an absolutely massive shipping port on the coast of HCMC.

Visiting this port provided a very authentic glimpse into the economic engine that is driving the growth of Vietnam. It is fascinating to think that of all the thousands of kilograms of cargo, each and every single one is accounted for, documented, processed, and unloaded. As I am switching to data science and math, I wonder about what structures and algorithms they are using to store the sheer amount of data associated with a port like Cat Lai. If even one number is not stored correctly a dramatic disruption in the supply chain could occur and affect a significant amount of consumers. It is truly impossible to comprehend the scale of that port—while I do know it takes 18 hours to handle one ship and they handle 81 containers per hour, no number no matter how big can truly encapsulate the scale of this operation.

After the visit to the port, we visited the U.S. Consulate and listened to a talk on Vietnam’s current economic position on the global scale. As we have learned about extensively, they are growing rapidly, mainly driven by exports. Obviously, the tariffs imposed by the U.S. are going to change exports for every country. Depending on what tariffs last, it could potentially be beneficial for Vietnam, but they most likely will be detrimental. For example, if the tariffs on China are particularly strict, it can lead to an escalation of the “China Plus One” trend where multinational firms develop manufacturing in another country in addition to China. If it becomes too expensive to facilitate long term business operations in China, I could see more companies investing more into Vietnam if there are no tariffs on Vietnam (this is why this strategy exists to begin with—Trump’s first administration saw sole tariffs on China). However, since the current administration does not seem keen on sparing any country, tariffs will most likely negatively impact Vietnam’s exports. However, a lot of Vietnam’s GDP derives from domestic means, so this should hopefully not set back the resilient Vietnamese too much.

Lastly, we ended the day by living out some microeconomics. The Banh Thanh market is one of the premier tourist attractions in Ho Chi Minh City, due to the sheer volume of wares on sale and the fact that you are encouraged to negotiate down the price for each item you purchase. When engaging in this process, I’ve noticed a few key differences from America. First off, to put it bluntly, the Vietnamese people are much more intent on scamming the tourists. The initial offer from a shopkeeper is probably five times as much as the items would go for even retail price, per my discussions with the UEF students. And I do not blame them at all for their pragmatic attitude. Aside from their profit incentive, most shopkeepers, especially the older ones, were courteous, especially when I tried to use one of the 5 Vietnamese phrases I know. Overall, it was a robust experience and encapsulates some of the main themes of my trip which is sadly coming to an end: culturally enriching, authentic, novel, and amazing.