US urges Hanoi to improve trade balance

Removing barriers: A vendor carries fruits for sale in front of the Opera House in Hanoi. The government is reviewing import tariffs on US goods and is encouraging increased imports of American products. — AFP

HANOI: US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer has told Vietnam’s top trade official that his country must improve the trade balance between the two nations and further open its markets.

Industry and Trade Minister Nguyen Hong Dien, in a meeting last Thursday in Washington with Greer, said his government is weighing the removal of “trade barriers” for American companies and will crack down on export fraud, according to a statement on the ministry’s website.