Last week, a trade deal was announced between the United States and Vietnam.
a trade deal was announced between the United States and Vietnam.
Under the terms of the deal, as reported by Reason Magazine’s Eric Boehm, “American exports to Vietnam will face no tariffs while Vietnamese goods imported into the United States will face tariffs of between 20 percent and 40 percent.”
Yes, you read that right.
As part of President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” efforts, Vietnamese businesses importing American goods will not have to pay taxes to import these goods.
On the other hand, American businesses importing Vietnamese goods will have to pay taxes of 20% to 40%. If by “liberation,” Trump meant “taxation” this makes total sense. The only thing Trump is liberating in this deal is Americans from their money as they face higher prices.
“Vietnam helps Americans by selling them shoes (among other products) at a lower cost than if they were produced in the US,” explains Colin Grabow at the Cato Institute. “As of 2021, over one-quarter of imported footwear came from the Southeast Asian country at an average tariff rate of 13.