Tariffs, Smugglers, and Lawyers | New Asia Podcast Ep. 2

“It might be a slower GDP story, but there's a lot of grit in the Vietnamese economy.” - Rob Medd, Muddy Waters Asia In the second episode of The New Asia Podcast from Muddy Waters Asia, we’re reporting to you from Mumbai, India. But don’t worry - all eyes are still on Vietnam. Host Carson Block checks in with Rob Medd to unpack what’s really going on as Vietnam faces rising tariff threats and shifting global supply chains. While the headlines scream 46% tariffs, Rob explains why that number isn't likely to materialize, and how Vietnam’s government is responding behind the scenes. We dig into: What a 10–25% tariff could actually mean for Vietnam’s exporters & FDI Vietnam’s competitive position and outlook for its economic future - Trade balance pressures and credibility concerns Creative (and legal-ish) workarounds to tariffs …and why these tariffs could end up creating jobs (or should we say schemes) for lawyers & smugglers How can the US and Vietnam give businesses confidence that factories won’t suddenly become too expensive to run Whether companies like Samsung might freeze their CapEx How Vietnam stacks up to India when it comes to navigating the tariff storm To learn more about Muddy Waters Asia, please visit ⁠MuddyWatersAsia.com, follow us on ⁠X at @MuddyWatersAsia⁠ and subscribe to the ⁠Muddy Waters Asia email newsletter.