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Jul 11, 2018 / 17:20

Vietnam should prepare for the US-China trade war: Minister

Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh said that his ministry has made some proposals as cushion for Vietnam against the US-China trade war.

The trade clash between the US and China is a major issue that countries like Vietnam should look into thoroughly, said Minister Tuan Anh in a recent meeting. 
Accordingly, Anh warned that the steep duties from the US will likely cause Chinese products to divest their goods into alternative markets, including Vietnam. “An obvious threat can be seen that China goods can flock to Vietnam”, he said.
Hence, Vietnam had better prepare additional defensive measures for vulnerable sectors like textiles, garments and wood products, Tuan Anh stressed.
According to the Vietnamese official, the country has taken action to protect their steel products.
Textile is among sectors that can be affected by the US-China tradewar
Textile is among sectors that can be affected by the US-China tradewar

Regarding the war, Minister Tuan Anh commented that this is not only a trade war but also a war on power, technology and monetary policy between the world’s two largest economies. Besides, the US put trade barriers on not only China but also some of its allies, Tuan Anh noted. 
In such the context, “Vietnam should find sustainable way to boost its imports-exports in depth and scale”, said Tuan Anh. 

The latest trade war between the US and China was fired by the former last Friday, when Washington slapped a 25% duty on about US$34 billion worth of Chinese goods. China retaliated “immediately” with a similar action, the country’s foreign ministry said.
With the move, US President Donald Trump aims to be in line with pledges he made during his presidential campaign to get tough on China, amid the country's upcoming mid-term election. Yet the tension elscalation in trade can generate unexpectedly negative effects to the global economy that is on strong recovery.