United States President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday (Thursday AEST) that the U.S. has reached a trade agreement with Vietnam, setting a 20% tariff on Vietnamese imports and a 40% tariff on transshipped goods.
The new rates come just days ahead of the 9 July deadline, which would have triggered a steeper 46% tariff, as announced in April.
In a Truth Social post, Trump declared: "Vietnam will pay the United States a 20% Tariff on any and all goods sent into our Territory, and a 40% Tariff on any Transshipping.
"In return, Vietnam will do something that they have never done before, give the United States of America TOTAL ACCESS to their Markets for Trade.
"In other words, they will ‘OPEN THEIR MARKET TO THE UNITED STATES’, meaning that, we will be able to sell our product into Vietnam at ZERO Tariff."
The deal appears to include U.S. large-engine vehicle exports. Trump added:
“It is my opinion that the SUV or, as it is sometimes referred to, Large Engine Vehicle, which does so well in the United States, will be a wonderful addition to the various product lines within Vietnam.”
Vietnam was the sixth-largest source of U.S. imports in 2024 according to Census data, shipping US$136.5 billion worth of goods, including textiles and footwear for brands such as Nike and Lululemon.
The Trump administration has so far renegotiated trade frameworks only with China and the U.K., despite claiming progress with other nations.
Meanwhile, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell noted earlier this week in Sintra that the economic impact of the tariffs is expected to become more evident over the summer months.
