Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc, 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Giang Huy
Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc is on a working trip to the U.S. for tariff-related negotiations, and is expected to meet with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
The U.S.’ new tariffs on major trading partners took effect on Wednesday, with Vietnam hit with a 46% rate.
Its trade deficit with Vietnam last year was US$123.5 billion.
A source told VnExpress that Phoc is scheduled to meet Bessent on April 10 (Vietnam time).
News agency Reuters reported that he is also expected to meet with executives from major U.S. companies, including Boeing, SpaceX and Apple, and attend a ceremony where Vietnamese budget carrier Vietjet and investment fund KKR will sign a contract for a $200-million financing deal for buying aircraft.
Aniket Shah, an analyst at investment bank Jefferies, forecasts that the U.K., Japan, Vietnam, India, and Cambodia are likely to be the first nations to strike a tax agreement with the United States.
Shah’s prediction is based on various factors, including the nature of each country’s relationship with the Trump administration, the volume of U.S. imports from those nations, differences in current import tariffs, and the relative economic strength of each country.
During the past week the Vietnamese government has taken a number of measures to mitigate the impacts of the new tariffs.
It has asked the U.S. to delay the tariffs by at least 45 days to allow time for negotiations and preparation.
During a phone call with President Donald Trump last week, Party General Secretary To Lam said Vietnam is willing to lower tariffs on U.S. goods to 0% and called on the U.S. to do the same for Vietnamese imports.
Late last month Vietnam also lowered the most favored nation import duties on 16 American product groups.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday that Vietnam had lowered tariffs on American cherries, apples and almonds, all important exports for the country’s western states.
