Vietnam plans to reduce tariffs on various US products, including liquefied natural gas (LNG) and cars, and has taken steps to approve Starlink services, as part of efforts to prevent being subjected to US tariffs due to its significant bilateral trade surplus.
In recent weeks, the Southeast Asian manufacturing hub unveiled several measures, including increasing imports, to address its trade surplus with the US, which surpassed $123 billion last year, after President Donald Trump threatened broad tariffs on trading partners.
According to new plans announced late on Tuesday, the tariff on American liquefied natural gas will be reduced to 2% from 5%, the tariff on automobiles will drop to 32% from a range of 45% to 64%, and the tariff on ethanol will be lowered to 5% from 10%, Reuters reports.
This was confirmed by Nguyen Quoc Hung, head of the Finance Ministry's tax policy department, in a statement posted on the ministry's website.
The tariff reductions are intended to “improve trade balances with Vietnam's trading partners,” said Hung, noting that although the US and Vietnam share a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the two countries have not signed a free trade agreement.
Although Vietnam has not yet imported LNG from the US, the country has been in discussions with US suppliers for its future fleet of LNG power plants, with the first two plants set to begin commercial power generation by June this year.
Hung stated that the decree outlining the tariff cuts will be finalised within this month and will take effect immediately afterward.
He went on to add that tariffs on ethane will be eliminated, and duties on other imports, including chicken thighs, almonds, apples, cherries, and wooden products, will be reduced.
In a separate development, the government announced a decision to permit SpaceX to launch its Starlink satellite internet service on a trial basis in the country, while retaining full ownership of the service, according to a statement released on the government portal on Wednesday.
Granting the US firm permission to launch its internet service is viewed by some analysts as one of the steps Vietnam is taking to prevent being subjected to US tariffs.
Trump is expected to impose reciprocal tariffs on several countries starting 2nd April, though he said on Monday that some countries may receive exemptions.