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Chinese President Xi Jinping signed nearly four dozen transactions with the Vietnamese leader in LAM this week in what some people believe to be a decision to skyrocket American prices.
President Donald Trump condemned his partnership as an attempt by the two Asian leaders to find a way to “screw” the United States
“I don’t blame China, I don’t blame Vietnam,” Trump told journalists on Monday. “It’s a great meeting. They meet, like, trying to understand:” How to screw the United States of America? “”
The content of the most recent agreements between China And Vietnam remains uncertain, although this week’s reports suggested that they understood offers to improve supply chains, Customs inspections and cooperation on rail systems.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, on the left, and the Vietnamese president in Lam go through an honor guard during a welcome ceremony in the great people of the Beijing people on August 19, 2024. (Getty Images)
Trump has increased his trade war with Beijing this month by slapping a 145% rate on all imports from China, the second world economy, arousing concern about a massive decoupling that could increase the prices of everything, from electronics to machines and toys.
The White House during the weekend then Modified prices on smartphones And the computer equipment, and for the moment, these costs will remain at 20%, although Trump has declared that new prices on semiconductors would arrive.
China responded by hitting Washington with its own 125% reciprocal prices On American imports, deepen concerns about how the trade war will have an impact on American portfolios, businesses, local economies and the American position on the world stage.
Vietnam also found itself a higher target in the prices of the “Liberation Day” of Trump, which saw at least one price rate of 10% essentially gif American trading partner.
While many nations, especially the EU and Canadawere struck by steep prices targeting both their exports and their key industries, none was struck stronger than Vietnam. The country now faces a 46% coverage rate on all goods sent to the American market.
The US trade representative, Jamieson Greer, testified before the Senate finance committee on April 8, 2025. (Kayla Bartkowski / Getty Images)
“President Xi Jinping is trying to use his trip to Southeast Asia to portray China as the head of stakeholders responsible for the global trade system that the United States has built,” said Isaac Stone Fish, CEO and founder of Strategy Risks, a business intelligence company that focuses on China this week.
“Beijing and Chinese companies are looking for ways to get around the American rates by exporting to Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries,” said Stone Fish.
Vietnam would have sought to strengthen relations with Washington to try to reduce the prices on Hanoi by tightening controls Trade with China.
A Report by Reuters This week suggested that this could do so, in part, by repressing its labeling “Made in Vietnam” after the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Businesses to better regulate the origins of goods and materials in a decision to fight against fraud, although it is not clear what type of Hanoi checks will perform on individual exporters to ensure quality control.
Stone Fish argued that, given the immense amount of trade between China and Vietnam, Chinese companies will probably seek means to bring their products to the United States and skirt.
“Some Chinese companies seek to exploit pricing gaps and use Southeast Asia for the transhipment of goods in the United States,” he said. “How do they do it?” Sometimes they will have several sets of books, or do not classify articles, or will experiment with articles via Vietnam for minor treatment before labeling them like Vietnamese goods.
“Customs agents work hard to try to restrict these types of deliveries to come to the United States, and American and global companies must be very careful not to help inadvertently or participate in the price escape,” he added.
Donald Trump (Donald Trump 2024 Campaign / Fox News)
After the initial trade war which sparked Trump’s first mandate, manufacturers in China like Foxconn and LuxShare Precision Industry Co., who provide parts to American companies like Apple, crossed the border in Vietnam to bypass the prices, Bloomberg reported.
Trump said his pressure to hit the nations with unprecedented prices is an attempt to force US companies to bring manufacturing to the United States, although some experts argued that it was not something that can happen quickly.
The United States in 2023 was the largest export market in Vietnam, China being in second position, although Hanoi imports more products from China than any other nation, which makes it difficult to what extent exported products to the United States are manufactured using goods imported from Beijing.
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The White House did not answer questions from Fox News Digital as to whether it would be reprisal measures against Vietnam to conclude additional agreements with China.
Instead, a White House spokesperson said: “President Trump is a master’s degree, and more than 75 countries are working to negotiate trade agreements that serve farmers and workers better.
