Its an open secret you can see all over the books.I've always had a nagging suspicion about it. One furniture I've purchased is clearly produced by a Chinese firm but claims to be "made in Vietnam". I wonder if the only thing they did was punch holes for the bolts.
For months you'd get a "U.S. imports from China dropped by n" in the media headlines, if it isnt a complete rag a "U.S. imports from Vietnam increased by n" somewhere down the line at the end of the articles, but any mention of "Chinese exports to Vietnam increased by n" in the same time would get hardcensored by U.S. editors.