Hanoi plans to crack down on some China trade in bid to reduce US tariffs

Move to address concerns over Chinese goods being sent to the US via Vietnam

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In the hope of avoiding punishing US tariffs, Vietnam is prepared to crack down on Chinese goods being shipped to the United States via its territory and will tighten controls on sensitive exports to China, according to a person familiar with the matter and a government document seen by Reuters.

The offer came as senior US officials raised concerns about Chinese goods being sent to America with "Made in Vietnam" labels that draw lower duties.

Vietnam has for weeks been offering sweeteners that it hoped would persuade US President Donald Trump's administration to take a benign view of its huge trade surplus with America. Instead, it was hit with a 46 per cent tariff as part of Mr Trump's "Liberation Day" salvo.

While the tariff has been suspended for 90 days, the two countries agreed to start talks after a Vietnamese deputy prime minister met the US trade representative (USTR) on April 9.

Export-reliant Vietnam is hoping to get the duties reduced to a range of 22 per cent to 28 per cent, if not lower, according to three people with knowledge of the matter.

One of them said US officials had signaled that the range was likely.

In announcing the start of trade talks with the US on April 10, Vietnam's government said on its official portal that it would crack down on "trade fraud." It did not give details.

Since Mr Trump's first term, many multinational firms have implemented a "China plus one" policy of setting up factories in Vietnam to reduce exposure to Beijing.

The South-east Asian country is in a tight spot as it tries to preserve trade with the US, which is its largest export market and a security partner.

At the same time, Hanoi does not want to antagonize China, which is a top source of investment as well as a neighbor with which it has clashed over boundaries in the South China Sea.