By Kanishka Singh and David Brunnstrom
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – New U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a telephone name on Friday with Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and International Minister Bui Thanh Son, throughout which he urged Vietnam to deal with commerce imbalances and in addition mentioned frequent considerations concerning China.
Within the name, the primary between the 2 senior diplomats below the brand new administration of US President Donald Trump, the 2 males welcomed the thirtieth anniversary of US-Vietnam relations and the progress made below the great strategic partnership agreed between the 2 nation in 2023, in accordance with a State Division assertion. stated.
“The secretary additionally mentioned regional considerations, together with China's aggressive conduct within the South China Sea,” he added.
Whereas welcoming financial cooperation between the 2 international locations, Rubio “inspired Vietnam to deal with commerce imbalances,” he stated.
The U.S. commerce deficit with Vietnam surpassed $110 billion within the first 11 months of 2024, in accordance with U.S. figures launched this month, as exports from the Southeast Asian industrial hub grew. elevated in a context of file fall of its foreign money towards the greenback.
Though Vietnam has develop into an vital safety associate of the US, the big commerce deficit is seen by analysts as a significant threat for the export-dependent nation, amid Trump's threats of widespread tariffs. on American imports.
U.S. knowledge this month reveals a virtually 18% enhance within the U.S. deficit with Vietnam in comparison with the identical interval final 12 months. He confirmed that the communist-led nation has the fourth highest commerce surplus with the US, behind China, the European Union and Mexico.
Trump ended his first time period within the White Home with declarations from the Treasury that Vietnam and Switzerland had been foreign money manipulators concerning their market interventions geared toward weakening the worth of their currencies.
Vietnam, which counts the US as its largest market, is house to massive export-focused industrial operations of American multinationals reminiscent of Apple (NASDAQ:), Google (NASDAQ:), Nike (NYSE:) and Intel (NASDAQ:).
