U.S. President Donald Trump imposed an extremely high reciprocal tariff of 46% on Vietnam, leading to the worst-ever crash in the Vietnamese stock market.
On the 3rd (local time), the VN index, the main stock index of the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), closed at 1229.84, down 87.99 points (6.70%) from the previous trading day. This marks the largest daily drop since September 2001. Considering that the price limit of the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange is ±7%, it means it dropped to the lower limit.
The VN30, composed of the top 30 stocks by market capitalization, closed down 93.76 points (6.81%) at 1283.18. On that day, about 70% of the securities on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, including the major commercial bank Vietnam Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade (BIDV), fell to the lower limit (-7%), Bloomberg reported. Foreign investors net sold 200 billion won worth of shares that day.
Earlier that day, the White House announced that the reciprocal tariff rate on Vietnam was 46%, the highest among major U.S. trading partners excluding China. Vietnam responded to the Trump administration's policies by promising to purchase U.S. energy and agricultural products and reduce tariffs on U.S. imports to curb its trade surplus with the U.S. However, the so-called 'tariff bomb' resulted in a drop in stock prices.
According to AFP, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh ordered government ministries to immediately form a rapid response team on U.S. tariffs during a government meeting that day. Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc also plans to visit the United States this weekend with the management of airlines such as Vietnam Airlines and VietJet.