Japanese scallop producers are considering shifting their processing operations from China to Vietnam after China banned the import of Japanese seafood over the release of treated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant, The Japan News is reporting. An estimated 30,000 to 40,000 tons of scallops from Japan were processed in China for export to the US each year before the ban was implemented.

In recent years, China’s multitude of trade bans for various geopolitical reasons has seen foreign firms shift their attention to Vietnam. 

With this in mind, it’s worth noting that despite sharing a similar political system to China, Vietnam has taken a very different approach to foreign affairs. Weaponizing trade in international relations is very unusual for the country, particularly in its relationships with key investor countries like Japan. In this light, Vietnam is unlikely to give firms that move production south of the border a reason (in terms of import bans or the like based on geopolitical reasons), to move those operations back to China.