HANOI, Vietnam – Vietnam stated it lower import duties on a variety of products together with vehicles, liquefied fuel and a few agricultural merchandise in what gave the impression to be pre-emptive motion to blunt US President Donald Trump’s deliberate sweeping tariffs.
The announcement got here after Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh stated final month that Hanoi was reviewing levies with the intention to encourage elevated imports from the USA.
Washington’s commerce deficit with Vietnam is the third highest of any nation, after China and Mexico, and there are growing fears it may very well be a key goal of the White Home’s tariff drive, which has despatched shockwaves via world markets.
READ: US tariffs of 25% on metal, aluminum imports take impact
The Southeast Asian nation benefited from the commerce warfare between Beijing and Washington throughout Trump’s first time period because it turned an alternate manufacturing web site in Asia, and its commerce surplus with the USA doubled between 2017 and 2023.
“From March 31, 2025, sure objects resembling vehicles, wooden, ethanol, frozen hen legs, pistachios, almonds, contemporary apples, cherries, raisins, and so forth., can be topic to a brand new preferential import responsibility price,” an announcement stated late Monday on the federal government’s official information portal.
It added that import duties on some vehicles can be halved and the tax price for liquefied pure fuel will drop from 5 p.c to 2 p.c.
Tariffs on frozen hen legs can be diminished from 20 p.c to fifteen p.c, the charges on unshelled pistachios can be slashed from 15 p.c to 5 p.c, and for almonds it would drop from 10 p.c to 5 p.c.
“I consider that Vietnam is doing every part they will to melt the blow,” stated Bruno Jaspaert, CEO at DEEP C Industrial Zones in Vietnam and chairman of the nation’s European chamber of commerce.
“Relatively than retaliate, they offer, and hope to be handled in a greater method than most. However the general expectation is that there’ll nonetheless be tariffs,” he advised AFP.
Commerce warfare beneficiary
Vietnam is a producing powerhouse that’s closely reliant on exports and the USA was its largest market final 12 months.
With its geographical place and low cost expert labor, it was a serious beneficiary of many companies’ “China+1” technique initiated throughout Trump’s first time period.
American corporations have constructed factories there and Chinese language companies are additionally utilizing the nation to entry the US market.
Trump stated Sunday tariffs would apply to “all nations”, not simply these with the most important commerce imbalances with the USA, however added on Monday that he can be “very sort” to buying and selling companions.
Vietnam’s finance ministry stated final week that the modifications in duties had been to “address the difficult and unpredictable developments of the world’s geopolitical and financial scenario, particularly the modifications in financial, commerce and tariff insurance policies”.
READ: EU open to ‘compromise’ on US tariffs, says Scholz
Hanoi additionally introduced final week that it could permit Elon Musk’s SpaceX to launch its Starlink satellite tv for pc web service as a part of a pilot program that can final till the top of 2030.
There is no such thing as a restrict on international possession of the service, the federal government stated.
Chinh additionally advised US ambassador Marc Knapper final month that Vietnam was “actively addressing the present issues of the US in economic-trade-investment relations”, together with sending its prime commerce official to the USA.
Your subscription couldn’t be saved. Please strive once more.
Your subscription has been profitable.
The US deficit with Vietnam hit $123.5 billion in 2024, up greater than 18 p.c from 2023, in response to the Workplace of the USA Commerce Consultant.