United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met with Vietnam's Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc and agreed to begin formal negotiations on reciprocal trade between the two countries, according to a readout from the US Treasury Department published on Thursday.
"During their talks, Secretary Bessent emphasized the importance of continued engagement with trade partners, and the need for quick, demonstrable progress to resolve outstanding issues," the readout stated, noting that the Vietnamese deputy prime minister also met with US Trades Representative Jamieson Greer.
US President Donald Trump previously said that General Secretary of Vietnam's Communist Party To Lam expressed his country's willingness to reduce the tariffs on US goods to zero after Washington hit it with a 46% reciprocal tariff that was later temporarily lowered to 10% for the next 90 days.
