Big Cities Fail to Recover After the Tết Slump

Major cities in Vietnam, such as Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, are reviving as the Tết holiday enthusiasm wanes. There was an unusual lack of people out and about before the holiday. Once again, they are crowded with vehicles.

The atmosphere remains laid-back, even though stores and sidewalk vendors have resumed their activities. The pace is evidently very sluggish, but workers have returned to work, offices have turned on the lights, and industrial tools are functioning again.

There is a palpable sense of indifference and decreased productivity in the workplace even eight days following Tết. The festive spirit is well ingrained in Vietnamese culture and does not fade away quickly. Many people are still in the midst of a period of adjustment. Even though they’re physically back at work, they’re mentally still recovering from all the celebrations, visits to the temple, and heavy meals. The deliciousness of ‘bánh chưng’ and ‘mứt’, as well as lucky money practices, are still topics of conversation.

At work, emails are piling up, but since everyone is still in the holiday mood, nobody feels rushed to respond. Meetings often seem more like social gatherings than places for serious discussion. Workers in industrial zones are gradually resuming their normal routines, although they are unable to match their pre-Tết levels of productivity. Offices in the government, which are notoriously hectic during the holidays, actually move more slowly until the new routine is established.

Next Monday, thirteen days after Tết, things may return to normal. At that point, the holiday haze will have lifted and the business, manufacturing, and industrial districts will be operating at full capacity. Businesses, both domestic and international, have come to anticipate this tendency in Vietnam’s economy following Tết. Knowing that it’s usually futile to strive to be extremely busy too soon, some companies assign their workers smaller tasks to perform during the first two weeks after Thanksgiving.

However, for the time being, the economic centers of Vietnam are gradually returning to normalcy. The nation, which was euphoric only days ago, is now in a serene, transitional phase, and the spirit of the Lunar New Year lingers.

The usual tempo of everyday life will resume shortly, but for another week, the lull following Tết will remain an annual tradition in Vietnam.