JavaScript is off. Please enable to view full site.

Vietnam determined to tackle U.S. concerns about steel exports: finance minister

Vietnam determined to tackle U.S. concerns about steel exports: finance minister

Friday, July 05, 2019, 09:46 GMT+7
Vietnam determined to tackle U.S. concerns about steel exports: finance minister
Vietnam finance minister Dinh Tien Dung speaks during an interview in London, Britain, July 4, 2019. Photo: Reuters

Vietnam is determined to tackle U.S. concerns about steel exports at the center of a new tariff row, its finance minister said on Thursday.

The U.S. Commerce Department on Tuesday said it would slap tariffs of up to 456% on certain steel produced in South Korea or Taiwan which is then shipped to Vietnam for minor processing before being exported to the United States.

“We will be determined in managing the situation, handling the violations and handling the breaches,” Dinh Tien Dung told Reuters in an interview through an interpreter.

“We want to demonstrate to President Donald Trump that we are taking a serious attitude to this.”

He added that, while there would be some economic impact from tariffs, the impact in the immediate future will not be that high because steel exports are not the biggest share of exports to the U.S.

He declined to say whether Vietnam would consider retaliatory tariffs, adding “we first need to review (the situation).”

Amid a trade war between Washington and Beijing, some businesses are shifting their supply chains away from China to avoid U.S. tariffs.

After signing a free trade deal with the European Union last week, Dung said, Vietnam is now targeting a similar agreement with Britain after Brexit.

“We want to negotiate soon... the sooner the better,” he said.

Economic growth would be between 6.5-6.7% this year, with a similar level expected next year, Dung said.

Spurred by robust exports and foreign investment, Vietnam’s gross domestic product grew 6.71% in the second quarter of this year, slowing down from a revised expansion of 6.82% in the first quarter, official data showed last week.

Dung said the government had no plans for further dollar-denominated bond issuance.

Vietnam has been a relatively infrequent visitor to international bond markets, with its last sale in 2014.

Reuters - Tuoi Tre News

More

Read more

McLaren 750S makes debut in Vietnam

A striking McLaren 750S Spider, resplendent in a vibrant orange hue, took center stage at its debut ceremony held in Ho Chi Minh City

7 hours ago
;

Photos

VIDEOS

‘Taste of Australia’ gala dinner held in Ho Chi Minh City after 2-year hiatus

Taste of Australia Gala Reception has returned to the Park Hyatt Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City's District 1 after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Vietnamese woman gives unconditional love to hundreds of adopted children

Despite her own immense hardship, she has taken in and cared for hundreds of orphans over the past three decades.

Vietnam’s Mekong Delta celebrates spring with ‘hat boi’ performances

The art form is so popular that it attracts people from all ages in the Mekong Delta

Latest news