[HANOI] Vietnam is reviewing its duties on US goods, including on liquefied natural gas, agriculture and high-tech products, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh told the US ambassador to the country, a report on the government’s website said.
The South-east Asian industrial hub, which is heavily reliant on exports to the US and has a large trade surplus with Washington exceeding US$123 billion in 2024, is scrambling to avoid reciprocal tariffs that the Trump administration has threatened globally to reduce America’s trade deficit.
Chinh said “relevant ministries, sectors and agencies are actively reviewing import tariffs on goods from the United States, encouraging increased imports of key US products that Vietnam needs, especially agricultural products, liquefied gas and high-tech products,” the report on the government portal said.
Chinh met US ambassador Marc Knapper on Thursday (Mar 13).
A delegation led by Vietnam’s trade minister Nguyen Hong Dien is currently in the US and plans meetings with top trade and energy officials with the aim of reaching deals, according to a Vietnam government document seen by Reuters.
Vietnamese officials have repeatedly indicated their willingness to meet US requests on reducing trade imbalances and facilitate US business in the country, including by pledging a quick licensing process for Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite services.
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Vietnamese imports of US LNG have often been mentioned by Vietnamese and US officials as a means to reduce the large trade gap, but no concrete steps have been taken yet.
The Vietnamese fledgling LNG industry currently relies on short-term deals for small shipments, rather than multi-year contracts preferred by US exporters.
In February, the trade minister said Vietnam was ready to import more farm products from the US.
More than one-fourth of US exports to Vietnam last year were agricultural products, mostly cotton, soybeans and tree nuts, for a total value of US$3.4 billion, according to US government data.
Vietnam is also keen to import more US high-tech products, including AI-grade chips, but faces restrictions on accessing the most advanced semiconductors under rules adopted by the previous US administration under former president Joe Biden. REUTERS
