Local, foreign firms in storm-hit Vietnam face months of recovery

Typhoon Yagi a reminder of nation's vulnerability to climate change

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Factory roofs blown off, products worth millions of dollars destroyed, supply chains disrupted-Typhoon Yagi has had a disastrous impact on local and global companies in northern Vietnam, which could take months to recover, business leaders warn.

The strongest typhoon to hit the country in decades slammed into the important industrial port city of Haiphong before unleashing a torrent of rain across the north, a major production hub for global tech firms such as Samsung and Foxconn.

With climate change making destructive storms like Yagi more likely, the disaster raises questions about Vietnam's push to become an alternative to China in the global supply chain, owing to its high susceptibility to such storms and lack of mitigating measures.

Dozens of factories and warehouses in Haiphong were damaged by Yagi, while some in neighbouring Quang Ninh province were expected to have no power until the end of the week, business leaders told AFP.

"I can guarantee that (the damage) is more than tens of millions of dollars," said Mr Bruno Jaspaert, chief executive of Deep C Industrial Zones, home to 178 companies across five industrial areas in Haiphong and Quang Ninh. “At least 85 per cent of our customers have sustained damage." Many companies lost roofs, while another business saw 3,000 sq m of wall panels blown off in gale-force winds, Mr Jaspaert told AFP.