Trump’s Tariffs Hit China, But Boosted Vietnam: Where Was India?

The United States President Donald Trump 's tariffs on China has heightened his economic battle with the country, however Vietnamese entrepreneurs have slowly emerged to compete with Chinese exports that have increasingly been facing restrictions from the West.

Trump tariffs have impacted different countries differently. While, China has been severely disadvantaged in the process it has benefitted Vietnam's entrepreneurs.

How Would Vietnam Be Impacted Once The Tariff Hold Is Over?

According to a BBC report, the recent announcement by Donald Trump, in which he said that tariffs on certain countries were put on hold for a span of 90 days, has exempted Vietnam for the time being and it will be impacted adversely if 46% tariffs on Vietnamese goods are imposed eventually. But that plan is currently on hold, the report added.

Vietnam and Indonesia are emerging as key players in industries from chips to electric vehicles, due to the vacuum created by the absence of Chinese goods, as per the report.

Additionally, the United States is also encouraging new players to enter the global supply chain as they wish to cut their dependence on China.

Entrepreneurs of Vietnam also find themselves stuck between the world's two biggest economies - China, which is a powerful neighbour and their biggest trading partner, and the US, which is a significant export market looking to strike a deal at Beijing's expense, it added.

The US market is a significant one for Vietnam as it is an emerging powerhouse where manufacturing giants like Samsung, Intel and Foxconn, the Taiwanese firm contracted to make iPhones, have set up shop, the report added.

India Emerges Victorious

Since Trump has paused or minimized duties on most other nations, India is automatically getting a rare opportunity to take center stage.

While the two largest economies in the world are caught up in an epic face-off, the global supply chains and investor confidence is dwindling.

In all of this, India is a player which has low exposure to US trade - just 2.7% of US imports as compared to the 14% that China holds. Therefore, India is shielded from a significant part of the direct impact.

Additionally, India has a tariff-free edge as the Indian-made iPhones are exempt from Trump's tech tariffs as of now, unlike the ones made in China and Apple has been assembling all iPhone models in India, including the top-end titanium Pro versions.

Approximately $17.4 billion worth of iPhones were exported from India in FY25, as official data.

Further, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also been incentivising the 'Make-in-India' movement by pumping $26 billion into manufacturing subsidies, including a fresh $2.7 billion worth of incentives for electronics and semiconductors.

Markets have also been reflecting this behaviour as Indian bonds have rallied when Chinese as well as US assets took a hit. Further, markets did not just rebound but Nifty 50 also managed to erase all tariff-driven losses, making India the first major global market to rebound.

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