Vietnam ready to import more US farm goods as trade risks rise

Hanoi faces mounting risks as its trade surplus with the US surpasses US$123 billion amid global trade disputes.

Vietnam looked to expand agricultural collaboration with the US to ensure diversified products and stable supply chains. (EPA Images pic)

HANOI: Vietnam is ready to open its market and import more agricultural products from the US, its trade minister Nguyen Hong Dien said.

Vietnam is facing risks from intensifying global trade disputes, including new duties from the US, its largest export market.

“The two countries need to further strengthen cooperation in the agricultural sector so that each side can diversify products and supply chains,” Dien told US ambassador to Hanoi Marc Knapper at a meeting earlier this week, the Vietnamese government said in a statement on Friday.

He said Vietnam also hopes the US would further open its market for Vietnamese farm produce.

Vietnam is the US’s 9th largest export market for agricultural products such as meat, fruit, corn and dairy products.

Vietnam’s trade surplus with the US hit a record high of more than $123 billion last year, US data showed.