Citigroup to Buy Stake in Stock Brokerage Company in Vietnam

Yes, That Vietnam, There is no Other Vietnam

The image that the nation of Vietnam conjures up is one of rice paddies, jungles, American foreign and military policy gone way off course.  It is not an image of , say Merrill Lynch.  It is a communist country.

Now it turns out that communism is not what it used to be.  Citigroup is purchasing a 9.9% interest in a Vietnam based brokerage firm.

"Fundamentally we're very bullish on Vietnam, despite the short-term pressures on the economy," said Brett Krause, head of Citigroup in Vietnam.

The irony here is too great for even The Dismal Political Economist to make further comment.