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On the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City, factory workers at Dony Garment have been working overtime for weeks.

Ever since Donald Trump announced a whopping 46% trade tariff on Vietnam, they’ve been preparing for the worst.

They’re rushing through orders to clients in three separate states in America.

Sewing machines buzz with the sound of frantic efforts to do whatever they can before Mr Trump’s big decision day. He may have put his “Liberation Day” tariffs on pause for 90 days, but no one in this factory is taking anything for granted.

Staff have been working overtime
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Staff have been working overtime

Workers like Do Thi Anh are feeling the pressure.

“I have two children to raise. If the tariffs are too high, the US will buy fewer things. I’ll earn less money and I won’t be able to support my children either. Luckily here our boss has a good vision,” she tells me.

Do Thi Anh
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Do Thi Anh

That vision was crafted back in 2021. When COVID struck, they started to look at diversifying their market.

Previously they used to export 40% of their garments to America. Now it’s closer to 20%.

The cheery-looking owner of the firm, Pham Quang Anh, tells me with a resilient smile: “We see it as dangerous to depend on one or two markets. So, we had to lose profit and spend on marketing for other markets.”

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You asked, we listened, the Trump 100 podcast is continuing every weekday at 6am

That foresight could pay off in the months to come. But others are in a far more vulnerable state.

Some of Mr Pham’s colleagues in the industry export all their garments to America. If the 46% tariff is enforced, it could destroy their businesses.

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Doubts US will start making what Vietnam delivers

Down by the Saigon River, young couples watch on as sunset falls between the glimmering skyscrapers that stand as a testament to Vietnam’s miracle growth.

Cuong works in finance
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Cuong works in finance

Cuong, an affluent-looking man who works in finance, questions the logic and likelihood that America will start making what Vietnam has spent years developing the labour, skills and supply chains to reliably deliver.

“The United States’ GDP is so high. It’s the largest in the world right now. What’s the point in trying to get jobs from developing countries like Vietnam and other Asian nations? It’s unnecessary,” he tells me.

But the Trump administration claims China is using Vietnam to illegally circumvent tariffs, putting “Made in Vietnam” labels on Chinese products.

There’s no easy way to assess that claim. But market watchers believe Vietnam does need to signal its willingness to crack down on so-called “trans-shipments” if it wants to cut a deal with Washington.

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Vietnam can’t afford to alienate China

The US may also demand a major cutback in Chinese manufacturing in Vietnam.

That will be a much harder deal to strike. Vietnam can’t afford to alienate its big brother.

Luke Treloar, head of strategy at KPMG in Vietnam
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Luke Treloar, head of strategy at KPMG in Vietnam

Luke Treloar, head of strategy at KPMG in Vietnam, is however cautiously optimistic.

“If Vietnam goes into these trade talks saying we will be a reliable manufacturer of the core products you need and the core products America wants to sell, the outcome could be good,” he says.

But the key question is just how much influence China will have on Vietnamese negotiators.

Anything above 10-20% tariffs would be intensively challenging

This moment is a huge test of Vietnam’s resilience.

Anything like 46% tariffs would be ruinous. Analysts say 10-20% would be survivable. Anything above, intensely challenging.

But this looming threat is also an opportunity for Vietnam to negotiate and grow. Not, though, without some very testing concessions.

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Customers of five water firms are facing higher than expected hikes to bills

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Customers of five water firms are facing higher than expected hikes to bills

Customers of five water firms are facing higher than expected rises to their inflation-busting bills after the companies disputed limits imposed by the industry regulator.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) was called in to review Ofwat’s determinations on what Anglian Water, Northumbrian Water, South East Water, Southern Water, and Wessex Water could charge customers from 2025-30.

The CMA’s panel said on Thursday: “The group has provisionally decided to allow 21% – an additional £556m in revenue – of the total £2.7bn the five firms requested.

“This extra funding is expected to result in an average increase of 3% in bills for customers of the disputing companies, which is in addition to the 24% increase for customers of these companies expected as part of Ofwat’s original determination.”

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The decision showed that Wessex household and business customers faced the largest increase – on top of the rise agreed by Ofwat – of 5%, leaving their average annual bills at £622.

South East and Southern customers will see rises of 4% and 3% respectively while Anglian and Northumbrian’s are set to soak up the lowest percentage increase of just 1%.

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South East had sought the biggest increase – 18% on top of the 18% hike it had been granted over the five-year period.

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July: Water regulator Ofwat to be scrapped

The companies exercised their right to an appeal after Ofwat released its final determinations on what they could charge at the end of last year.

They essentially argued that they could not meet their regulatory requirements under the controls amid a rush to bolster crucial infrastructure including storm drains, water pipelines and storage capacity.

Crisis-hit Thames Water was initially among them but it later withdrew its objection pending the outcome of ongoing efforts to secure its financial future through a change of ownership.

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Higher bills ‘part of the cost’ of water reform

Chair of the CMA’s independent panel, Kirstin Baker, said: “We’ve found that water companies’ requests for significant bill increases, on top of those allowed by Ofwat, are largely unjustified.

“We understand the real pressure on household budgets and have worked to keep increases to a minimum, while still ensuring there is funding to deliver essential improvements at reasonable cost.”

Ofwat, which has faced industry criticism in the past for an emphasis on keeping bills low at the expense of investment, is set to be replaced by a new super regulator under plans confirmed in the summer.

It has faced outrage on many fronts, especially over sewage spills, and allowing rewards for failure.

Water Minister Emma Hardy said in response to the CMA’s decision: “I understand the public’s anger over bill rises – that’s why I expect every water company to offer proper support to anyone struggling to pay.

“We’ve made sure that investment cash goes into infrastructure upgrades, not bonuses, and we’re creating a tough new regulator to clean up our waterways and restore trust in the system.

“We are laser focused on helping ease the cost of living pressure on households: we’ve frozen fuel duty, raised the minimum wage and pensions and brought down mortgage rates – putting more money in people’s pockets.”

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Britain’s winter blackout risk the lowest in six years – but ‘tight’ days expected

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Britain's winter blackout risk the lowest in six years - but 'tight' days expected

Britain is at the lowest risk of a winter power blackout than at any point in the last six years, the national electricity grid operator has said.

Not since the pre-pandemic winter of 2019-2020 has the risk been so low, the National Energy System Operator (NESO) said.

It’s thanks to increased battery capacity to store and deploy excess power from windfarms, and a new subsea electricity cable to Ireland that came on stream in April.

The margins between expected demand and supply are now roughly three gas power stations greater than last year, the NESO said.

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Renewables overtake coal for first time

It also comes as Britain and the world reached new records for green power.

For the first time, renewable energy produced more of the world’s electricity than coal in the first half of 2025, while in Britain, a record 54.5% of power came from renewables like solar and wind energy in the three months to June.

More renewable power can mean lower bills, as there’s less reliance on volatile oil and gas markets, which have remained elevated after the invasion of Ukraine and the Western attempt to wean off Russian fossil fuels.

“Renewables are lowering wholesale electricity prices by up to a quarter”, said Jess Ralston, an energy analyst at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) thinktank.

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In a recent winter, British coal plants were fired up to meet capacity constraints when cold weather increased demand, but still weather conditions meant lower supply, as the wind didn’t blow.

Those plants have since been decommissioned.

But it may not be all plain sailing…

There will, however, be some “tight” days, the NESO said.

On such occasions, the NESO will tell electricity suppliers to up their output.

The times Britain is most likely to experience supply constraints are in early December or mid-January, the grid operator said.

The NESO had been owned by National Grid, a public company listed on the New York Stock Exchange, but was acquired by the government for £630m in 2023.

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Man Utd and chemicals boss warns of ‘moment of reckoning’ for his industry

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Man Utd and chemicals boss warns of 'moment of reckoning' for his industry

Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the co-owner of Manchester United and head of Ineos, one of Europe’s largest chemical producers, has staged an “11th-hour intervention” in an effort to “save” the chemical industry.

Sir Jim has called on European legislators to reduce price pressures on chemical businesses, or there “won’t be a chemical industry left to save”.

“There’s, in my view, not a great deal of time left before we see a catastrophic decline in the chemical industry in Europe”, he said.

The “biggest problem” facing businesses is gas and electricity costs, with the EU needing to be “more reactive” on tariffs to protect competition, Sir Jim added.

Prices should be eased on chemical companies by reducing taxes, regulatory burdens, and bringing back free polluting permits, the Ineos chairman and chief executive said.

It comes as his company, Europe’s biggest producer of some chemicals and one of the world’s largest chemical firms, announced the loss of 60 jobs at its acetyls factory in Hull earlier this week.

Cheap imports from China were said to be behind the closure, as international competition facing lower costs has hit the sector.

What could happen?

Now is a “moment of reckoning” for Europe’s chemicals industry, which is “at a tipping point and can only be saved through urgent action”, Sir Jim said.

European chemical sector output declined significantly due to reduced price competitiveness from high energy and regulatory costs, according to research funded by Ineos and carried out by economic advisory firm Oxford Economics.

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The report said the continent’s policymakers face a “critical” decision between acting now to safeguard “this vital strategic industry or risk its irreversible decline”.

As many as 1.2 million people are directly employed by chemical businesses, with millions more supported in the supply chain and through staff spending wages, the Oxford Economics report read.

Average investment by European chemical firms was half that of US counterparts (1.5%, compared to 3%), a trend which is projected to continue, the report added.

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