Vietnam is increasing its procurement of American goods, including defense and security equipment, and has formally requested a 45-day postponement on the application of U.S. tariffs. This announcement was made by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh in a statement released late Monday.
During a cabinet meeting that day, Chinh also expressed Vietnam’s desire for expedited delivery of commercial aircraft that its domestic airlines have already ordered from U.S. manufacturers. As a key manufacturing hub in Southeast Asia for numerous Western firms, Vietnam registered a significant trade surplus of over $123 billion with the U.S. last year, the latter being Vietnam’s largest export market.
Prime Minister Chinh indicated that Vietnam is negotiating with the U.S. to defer the imposition of a steep 46% tariff rate announced by U.S. President Donald Trump the previous week, allowing time for more comprehensive trade discussions.
In recent developments, President Trump and Vietnamese leader To Lam have agreed to explore ways to eliminate the tariffs, following what Trump described as a very productive phone conversation last Friday.
Last Friday, Trump also posted on his Truth Social platform that Vietnam offered to eliminate all import duties of U.S. goods.
