The U.S. Department of the Treasury has recently placed Viet Nam and other 11 countries and territories on its “Monitoring List” of major trading partners although the Southeast Asian nation was excluded from the list currency manipulators since last April.
The Monitoring List comprises China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Germany, Italy, India, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, Viet Nam, and Mexico, according to the semiannual Report of the Treasury which was delivered to U.S. Congress on Macroeconomic and Foreign Exchange Policies of Major Trading Partners of the U.S.
The Treasury reviewed and assessed the policies of major U.S. trading partners, comprising roughly 80 percent of U.S. foreign trade in goods and services, during the four quarters through December 2021.
Both Viet Nam and Taiwan exceeded the thresholds of fewer than three criteria under the 2015 Act over the reviewed four quarters.
Though Viet Nam and Taiwan no longer meet all three criteria for enhanced analysis, Treasury will continue to conduct an in-depth analysis of these economies’ macroeconomic and exchange rate policies until they do not meet all three criteria under the 2015 Act for at least two consecutive Reports.
In early 2021, Treasury commenced enhanced bilateral engagement with Viet Nam in accordance with the 2015 Act.
As a result of discussions through the enhanced engagement process, Treasury and the State Bank of Viet Nam (SBV) reached agreement in July 2021 to address Treasury’s concerns about Viet Nam’s currency practices.
The Treasury continues to engage closely with the SBV to monitor Viet Nam’s progress in addressing Treasury’s concerns and is thus far satisfied with progress made by Viet Nam.
VGP