Vietnam's shipments from China, to US reach record high

7/5/2025 15:59

Vietnam's imports from China and exports to the United States both reached a post-pandemic record in April, amid talks with Washington to reduce Hanoi's trade surplus and a crackdown on Chinese goods being shipped to the U.S. via its territory.



The Southeast Asian nation faces the risk of 46% duties on its exports to the U.S. if the White House confirms this rate at the end of a global tariff pause in July. This could undermine Vietnam's growth model and hit multinationals exporting from the country, including Samsung and Nike.



Hanoi has made multiple offers to the Trump administration to avoid high levies, including clamping down on illegal transshipment of Chinese goods to the U.S. via Vietnam. Goods benefit from lower tariffs if labelled as 'Made in Vietnam'.



However, trade trends that have attracted U.S. criticism are accelerating, potentially complicating Vietnam's efforts to extract U.S. concessions in ongoing trade talks.



The Trump administration wants to reduce trade imbalances, but Vietnam's surplus with the United States expanded by nearly 25% in the four months to April year on year, according to Vietnam's statistics agency.