(April 8): One of Vietnam’s top officials hurried to Washington on Monday for last-minute meetings, as the Southeast Asian nation makes an 11th-hour case to blunt one of the highest tariff rates imposed by US President Donald Trump.

Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc cancelled afternoon meetings in New York on Monday to travel to the US capital after receiving instructions from Hanoi, according to people with knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing the planned talks. He plans to meet with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and possibly Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in the coming days, they said. 

It is unclear if the meetings will take place before Trump’s 46% tariff on Vietnam takes effect at 12.01am in Washington on Wednesday. The people said that Vietnamese officials aren’t very optimistic that a deal can be reached soon.

Representatives of Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the US Treasury Department, and the Commerce Department didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. 

Vietnam is trying urgent diplomacy to avoid one of the highest tariff rates among those Trump unveiled at a Rose Garden event last week. The Asian nation already slashed import levies on a range of products, and has conveyed to US officials that it is working to address a trade imbalance that widened to a US$123.5 billion (RM553.6 billion) surplus last year.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said late on Monday that Vietnam is working on US concerns about non-tariff barriers, and the government will push for more purchases of US goods, including products related to national security and defence.

One of the world’s most trade-dependent economies, Vietnam was among the first countries to be singled out by Trump for showing a willingness to negotiate. Indeed, the deputy prime minister was already planning to make a trip to Washington when Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs sent global markets tumbling.

Bessent has said he hopes tariff rates will come down as talks get going with US trading partners, and that everything will be on the table. The Treasury chief said earlier on Monday that he will be negotiating with a Japanese team, and expects Japan to get priority, thanks to having reached out to Washington swiftly. The former hedge fund manager appeared to be playing a more hands-on role in tariff talks, even as Wall Street speculated that he wasn’t part of the core group of Trump officials that set rates.

Still, it is unclear exactly what Trump is looking for in any deal. His tariff formula is tied to trade deficits, not reciprocal rates, and officials have given differing explanations on the ultimate aim of the levies. 

Southeast Asia is facing some of the highest tariffs from Trump, after US companies shifted manufacturing to the region from China, with the likes of Apple Inc making products including iPads, AirPods and watches in Vietnam. Cambodia, which is facing a 49% US tariff, has said it would slash its own duties on American goods, while Indonesia pledged to ease its trade rules.

Uploaded by Tham Yek Lee