U.S. President Joe Biden’s bid to draw Vietnam closer as a strategic ally will clash head-on with his desire for union workers’ votes on Wednesday as the Commerce Department hears testimony on whether to designate Vietnam as a “market economy”.
The move, opposed by U.S. steelmakers and Gulf Coast shrimpers but backed by retailers and other business groups, would reduce the punitive anti-dumping duties set on Vietnamese imports because of its current status as a non-market economy with heavy state influence.
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Vietnam is already a market economy,” said Ted Osius, head of the U.S.-ASEAN Business Council, which backs the upgrade. “It has met key criteria such as currency convertibility and is ready for an accurate designation.”
The Commerce Department will hear arguments from both sides during a virtual hearing on Wednesday afternoon in Washington as part of a review due to be completed in late July.
Vietnam has argued to be freed of the non-market label because of recent economic reforms, saying retaining the moniker is bad for increasingly close two-way ties that Washington sees as a counterbalance to China.
US weighs upgrade for Vietnam to ‘market economy’ status
