Economy of Vietnam
Until the French colonization in the mid-19th century, Vietnam's economy had been mostly agrarian, subsistence-based and village-oriented. French colonizers, however, deliberately developed the regions differently as the French needed raw materials and a market for French manufactured goods, designating the South for agricultural production as it was better suited for agriculture, and the North for manufacturing as it was naturally wealthy in mineral resources. Though the plan exaggerated regional divisions, the development of exports—coal from the North, rice from the South—and the importation of French manufactured goods stimulated domestic commerce.
Asian French
The Vietnamese form the most established Asian ethnic group in France, with a presence in the country dating back to the start of French colonialism in Vietnam in the latter half of the 19th century. As of 2012, the population of the community is estimated to be about 300,000, the second largest overseas Vietnamese population outside eastern Asia.