US-Vietnam trade deal sows new China uncertainty

FILE PHOTO: The production line of the Ford F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck in Dearborn, Mich., April 4, 2022. Vietnam is set to face a minimum 20 per cent tariff in return for opening its market to US products, including cars.- The New York Times

HANOI: Vietnam's trade deal with the United States averts the most punishing of Donald Trump's "reciprocal" levies but analysts warned it could provoke a fresh standoff between Washington and Beijing.

The South-East Asian nation has the third-biggest trade surplus with the United States of any country after China and Mexico, and was targetted with one of the highest rates in the US president's "Liberation Day" tariff blitz on April 2.