US trade deficit with Vietnam balloons to record high, as Trump administration launches currency probe
- Vietnam’s trade surplus with the US reached record levels in August as firms moved supply chains from China to avoid trade war tariffs
- Data comes just days after Washington announced a probe into alleged currency manipulation by Vietnam, which could result in import tariffs
The United States’ trade deficit with Vietnam surged to an all-time high in August, data released this week showed, just days after the Trump administration announced an investigation that could result in tariffs being slapped on the Southeast Asian nation.
The US trade in goods deficit with Vietnam rose by 11 per cent between July and August to US$7.6 billion, and 38.9 per cent increase from a year earlier, US government data showed.
The announcement followed the commencement of two separate US trade probes against Vietnam for the use of timber that has been allegedly illegally harvested or traded, and currency manipulation.
Everybody is concerned, especially investors in Vietnam who moved their factories from China
The USTR did not give a timeline for the investigation, but its probe against China took seven months. On Thursday, the agency published a note requesting written responses to the investigation with a deadline of November 12, meaning there will be no movement this side of November’s US election.
