Trump rails at Vietnam trade imbalance as deals signed in Hanoi

HANOI: Vietnam and the US signed a raft of energy and aviation deals during a visit to Hanoi by US president Donald Trump who railed against Washington’s yawning trade deficit with the fastgrowing nation.

Trump was in the communist capital at the tail end of his swing through Asia where he has promoted his ‘America First’ mantra on global trade, prioritising ‘ fair’ bilateral deals over sprawling multilateral pacts.

Several agreements were signed during his state visit yesterday, including in the natural gas sector, transport and aviation.

National carrier Vietnam Airlines signed a deal worth US$ 1.5 billion for engines and support services from US firm Pratt Whitney, which the airline said would boost US-Vietnam ties.

“( The agreement) will further reinforce the important economic, trade and investment partnership between Vietnam and the US,” Vietnam Airlines chief executive officer (CEO) Duong Tri Thanh said in a statement.

Trump is seeking to boost exports of American goods and services as part of a campaign pledge that ushered him into office with

(The agreement) will further reinforce the important economic, trade and investment partnership between Vietnam and the US. Duong Tri Thanh, Vietnam Airlines CEO

hefty support from blue- collar workers in the US.

He has accused Vietnam and China, two key Asian manufacturing hubs, of “stealing” American jobs and blamed for previous US administrations for allowing trade deficits to grow unchecked.

Yesterday he again complained about the US’ gaping trade deficit with Vietnam, worth US$ 32 billion in 2016.

“We have to get rid of the trading imbalance, we can’t have a trade imbalance,” he said at the beginning of a meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

“We have to take care of American companies and we have to take care of American workers,” he added in comments likely to play well among his base back home.

American energy firms Alaska Gasline Development Corporation and AES Corporation also signed deals yesterday, along with US truck company Navistar and Vietnamese budget airline VietJet, though no details were provided.

Vietnam has eagerly sought to drum up trade and investment with the US since Trump came to power, especially after he withdrew from the massive Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade deal that Vietnam stood to gain enormously from.

The US is a leading export market for Vietnam, where a booming manufacturing sector has largely driven dizzying economic growth in recent years.

American exports to Vietnam have soared in the past decade, increasing ninefold to more than US$ 10 billion in 2016, according to official figures from the US Trade Representative.

Vietnam’s exports to the US over the same period rose around fivefold. — AFP