Reuters: Vietnam introduces new regulations to crack down on illegal transshipment trade to fulfill tariff agreement with the US
Reuters reported on July 10 that Vietnam is planning to implement stricter penalties to combat trade fraud and illegal transportation of goods, in order to fulfill a preliminary tariff agreement with the Trump administration of the United States. According to a document from the Vietnamese Ministry of Trade on July 3, the new measures will include additional penalty levels for origin fraud, stricter inspection and monitoring procedures, focusing on Chinese products such as wooden furniture, plywood, steel mechanical parts, bicycles, batteries, and wireless earphones, to prevent illegal transshipment. The document stated that Vietnamese authorities have been informed to strengthen inspections on exports to the United States, emphasizing that "trade fraud has increased, focusing on avoiding tariffs and trade defense measures." The agreement between the United States and Vietnam plans to reduce the tariff on Vietnamese imports from the threatened 46% in April to 20%, but impose a 40% tax on illegally transshipped goods; data shows that since the outbreak of the China-US trade war in 2018, Vietnam's exports to the United States have almost tripled, reaching about $140 billion in 2024, while imports from China during the same period also reached about $140 billion, with both showing highly matching fluctuations. The Vietnamese Ministry of Trade document said that the new regulations will increase monitoring of companies that self-certify their origin, conduct more on-site inspections and certificate reviews, but the details of the penalties are not yet clear; the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative did not respond to comments, and key issues of the agreement, such as the definition of illegal transshipment and how much additional product value Vietnam needs to add, remain unclear. The Vietnamese government expects to strengthen enforcement by amending the law.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1837253309279499/
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