U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc of Vietnam in the Oval Office … [+] of the White House, on May 31, 2017 in Washington, D.C.
Olivier Douliery-Pool/Getty Images
If Donald Trump’s ghostwriter Tony Schwartz is mulling a sequel to “Art of the Deal,” he may find inspiration in Hanoi.
There, Schwartz will encounter a group of leaders running circles around his earlier muse, dating back to that 1987 bestseller. And, in the process, reminding investors everywhere why Vietnam’s Covid-19 economic bounce back is no fluke.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc’s government was doing its best to keep a low profile. All that changed earlier this month when President Trump’s Treasury Department formally labeled Vietnam a “currency manipulator.” Though Team Trump gave China a pass, it brought the hammer down on a nation with gross domestic product comparable to Louisiana, about $262 billion.
The reason: Trump is irked that Vietnam won a trade war he thought would prompt CEOs to move millions of factory jobs from China to America. Instead, much of that labor migration favored Vietnam.
Between July and August alone, Washington’s trade deficit with Hanoi jumped 11% to $7.6 billion, a roughly 39% increase from a year earlier. By October, it had risen to $8.74 billion. Trump already had lots of explaining to do over the tens of billions of dollars of bailouts he’s had to extend to U.S. farmers ruined by his China tariffs.
That’s billions borrowed from China to aid agricultural interests slammed by Trump’s trade war. Seeing tiny Vietnam reap the benefits adds insult to injury. And it has Trump lashing out, targeting Vietnam’s exchange rate.
The good news for Phuc’s government is that Trump will soon leave the scene. Joe Biden’s White House is more likely to prioritize Vietnam’s friendship, diplomatically speaking, over petty score-settling. What, after all, does America’s ginormous economy get from antagonizing a small one destined to be a significant power in Southeast Asia?
Women riding a motorcycle pass a clothing store in Hanoi on December 11, 2020. A strong response to … [+] the coronavirus pandemic, a surge in exports and healthy public spending has helped Vietnam buck a global downward economic trend in 2020 and fast track its recovery.
NHAC NGUYEN/AFP via Getty Image
Vietnam is often seen as a “mini-China” of sorts. A gross oversimplification, of course. Comparisons stem from Vietnam’s locale, 97 million-plus population and its reasonably similar governing system. Amid the trade war fallout, Hanoi wisely positioned itself as an ideal hedge against Trump and China’s Xi Jinping going toe-to-toe.
This dynamic is partly why Vietnam is likely to grow at least 6.5% in 2021, while Biden inherits a pandemic-decimated economy. Nor is Vietnam’s moment in the spotlight likely to be fleeting. It has a relative wage advantage in sectors from garments to furniture to the manufacture of consumer goods. Though South Asia, particularly Bangladesh, is making a run at factories fleeing China, Vietnam boasts better infrastructure and geographical placement within regional supply chains.
Vietnam’s boom is Phuc’s to lose. There’s much his government needs to do to raise its economic game and sustain the gains of recent years.
It matters that Hanoi appears to have handled the coronavirus well so far. Officially, the nation has reported only about 35 deaths. Even so, Hanoi must intensify efforts to root out corruption. It must strengthen the banking system, internationalize corporate governance and raise its stock market game.
Vietnam must shrink the size of the state sector to create more space for private enterprise. It must diversify growth engines away from exports toward services, innovation and tech startups. It must up investments in education and training to increase productivity.
Vietnam’s leadership also must embrace a freer media and internet. Clamping down on social media outlets is counterproductive in the long run. It’s hard to argue, decades on, that China’s “Great Firewall” has helped Beijing achieve any of its economic objectives. President Xi’s tenure is making China more opaque.
For now, though, Vietnam is teaching a masterclass in the art of the deal at which Trump was supposed to excel. And in ways ghostwriter Schwartz, in a series of recent interviews, now says must drive the president crazy as tiny Vietnam outmaneuvers the mighty Trump Nation.
One of Schwartz’s most interesting Vietnam-related Trump observations came out of a February 2019 interview with Politico. “Weakness is Trump’s greatest fear,” Schwartz said. As such, he said, Trump’s takeaway of the war in Vietnam was viscerally unsettling, “his worst fear writ large—that the enemy, with far less money and resources, would figure out a way to outwit the Goliath.”
Vietnam, let’s face it, did a far better job putting out the welcome mat for multinational companies, negotiating deals to create new jobs and raise wages and coming out on top from the soft-power marketing standpoint. As this dawned on Trump, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin fired a shot across Hanoi’s bow.
Trump’s 11th-hour Vietnam broadside seems at once Freudian and a bit Shakespearean, too. As Schwartz and many a Trump biographer point out, Trump has always been sensitive to the perception of him as a Vietnam draft-dodger. Now Vietnam is piecing the myth of Trump’s art-of-the-deal reputation, too.
LONDON (AP) — With a few daubs of a paintbrush, the Brontë sisters have got their dots back.
More than eight decades after it was installed, a memorial to the three 19th-century sibling novelists in London’s Westminster Abbey was amended Thursday to restore the diaereses – the two dots over the e in their surname.
The dots — which indicate that the name is pronounced “brontay” rather than “bront” — were omitted when the stone tablet commemorating Charlotte, Emily and Anne was erected in the abbey’s Poets’ Corner in October 1939, just after the outbreak of World War II.
They were restored after Brontë historian Sharon Wright, editor of the Brontë Society Gazette, raised the issue with Dean of Westminster David Hoyle. The abbey asked its stonemason to tap in the dots and its conservator to paint them.
“There’s no paper record for anyone complaining about this or mentioning this, so I just wanted to put it right, really,” Wright said. “These three Yorkshire women deserve their place here, but they also deserve to have their name spelled correctly.”
It’s believed the writers’ Irish father Patrick changed the spelling of his surname from Brunty or Prunty when he went to university in England.
Raised on the wild Yorkshire moors, all three sisters died before they were 40, leaving enduring novels including Charlotte’s “Jane Eyre,” Emily’s “Wuthering Heights” and Anne’s “The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.”
Rebecca Yorke, director of the Brontë Society, welcomed the restoration.
“As the Brontës and their work are loved and respected all over the world, it’s entirely appropriate that their name is spelled correctly on their memorial,” she said.
In a case that has sent shockwaves through the Vancouver Island art community, a local art dealer has been charged with one count of fraud over $5,000. Calvin Lucyshyn, the former operator of the now-closed Winchester Galleries in Oak Bay, faces the charge after police seized hundreds of artworks, valued in the tens of millions of dollars, from various storage sites in the Greater Victoria area.
Alleged Fraud Scheme
Police allege that Lucyshyn had been taking valuable art from members of the public under the guise of appraising or consigning the pieces for sale, only to cut off all communication with the owners. This investigation began in April 2022, when police received a complaint from an individual who had provided four paintings to Lucyshyn, including three works by renowned British Columbia artist Emily Carr, and had not received any updates on their sale.
Further investigation by the Saanich Police Department revealed that this was not an isolated incident. Detectives found other alleged victims who had similar experiences with Winchester Galleries, leading police to execute search warrants at three separate storage locations across Greater Victoria.
Massive Seizure of Artworks
In what has become one of the largest art fraud investigations in recent Canadian history, authorities seized approximately 1,100 pieces of art, including more than 600 pieces from a storage site in Saanich, over 300 in Langford, and more than 100 in Oak Bay. Some of the more valuable pieces, according to police, were estimated to be worth $85,000 each.
Lucyshyn was arrested on April 21, 2022, but was later released from custody. In May 2024, a fraud charge was formally laid against him.
Artwork Returned, but Some Remain Unclaimed
In a statement released on Monday, the Saanich Police Department confirmed that 1,050 of the seized artworks have been returned to their rightful owners. However, several pieces remain unclaimed, and police continue their efforts to track down the owners of these works.
Court Proceedings Ongoing
The criminal charge against Lucyshyn has not yet been tested in court, and he has publicly stated his intention to defend himself against any pending allegations. His next court appearance is scheduled for September 10, 2024.
Impact on the Local Art Community
The news of Lucyshyn’s alleged fraud has deeply affected Vancouver Island’s art community, particularly collectors, galleries, and artists who may have been impacted by the gallery’s operations. With high-value pieces from artists like Emily Carr involved, the case underscores the vulnerabilities that can exist in art transactions.
For many art collectors, the investigation has raised concerns about the potential for fraud in the art world, particularly when it comes to dealing with private galleries and dealers. The seizure of such a vast collection of artworks has also led to questions about the management and oversight of valuable art pieces, as well as the importance of transparency and trust in the industry.
As the case continues to unfold in court, it will likely serve as a cautionary tale for collectors and galleries alike, highlighting the need for due diligence in the sale and appraisal of high-value artworks.
While much of the seized artwork has been returned, the full scale of the alleged fraud is still being unraveled. Lucyshyn’s upcoming court appearances will be closely watched, not only by the legal community but also by the wider art world, as it navigates the fallout from one of Canada’s most significant art fraud cases in recent memory.
Art collectors and individuals who believe they may have been affected by this case are encouraged to contact the Saanich Police Department to inquire about any unclaimed pieces. Additionally, the case serves as a reminder for anyone involved in high-value art transactions to work with reputable dealers and to keep thorough documentation of all transactions.
As with any investment, whether in art or other ventures, it is crucial to be cautious and informed. Art fraud can devastate personal collections and finances, but by taking steps to verify authenticity, provenance, and the reputation of dealers, collectors can help safeguard their valuable pieces.
