section_path: Trade conflicts by country/Asia/Vietnam
section_name: Vietnam
paragraph_text: Vietnam
  
  On February 10, 2025, Trump renewed a 25% tariff on all steel imports originally imposed during his first term and increased aluminum tariffs from 10% to 25%. While other countries had previously received exemptions, Vietnam had not, meaning its steel and aluminum exports were already subject to U.S. tariffs. The hike in aluminum tariffs further strained Vietnamese industries and exporters.
  
  Vietnam's large trade surplus in goods with the US made it a target for reciprocal tariffs. On March 13, 2025, trade minister Nguyễn Hồng Diên arranged a meeting with Lutnick and Greer to try to secure a bilateral trade agreement. He ended up receiving Marc Knapper, a US Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador, on March 14. Knapper reassured him that the US tariff measures were not aimed at Vietnam and were meant to promote fair trade and American workers.
  
  On April 2, 2025, Trump presented with a 46% reciprocal tariff on Vietnam, shocking Vietnamese exporters. Vietnamese leaders tried to approach Trump diplomatically to find an agreement to remove the tariffs or to delay them. Vietnam's top leader, General Secretary To Lam, asked Trump to delay the imposition of tariffs for at least 45 days on April 5, with little result. Vietnam then offered to eradicate all US import tariffs, but Peter Navarro shot down the deal, saying "it's the non-tariff cheating that matters". The VN Index fell by 7% after the announcement of the tariffs, practically the biggest crash ever since the establishment of the Vietnamese stock market.
  
  On April 15, 2025, General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party Xi Jinping on a visit to Hanoi claimed that "China's mega market is always open to Vietnam" and urged Vietnam to resist "U.S unilateral bullying" and uphold free and open trade. Trump responded, "That's a lovely meeting. Meeting like, trying to figure out, 'How do we screw the United States of America?'".
  
  On April 16, 2025, Vietnam's foreign ministry said that South Korea and Vietnam are seeking to raise bilateral trade to $150 billion by 2030, in a "more balanced and sustainable manner", as they swear cooperation following Trump's tariffs, regardless of "Trump's walk back". Groundbreaking began on a $1.5 billion previously announced Trump Organization golf resort near Hanoi.
  
  The first round of negotiations occurred on May 7, whilst a second round of negotiation took place on May 19, led by Nguyen Hong Dien.