Vietnam escalated a charm offensive with the United States on Friday as it announced provisional deals for the import of U.S. energy products and a possible cut in duties on U.S. goods, as it tries to avoid tariffs from the Trump administration.

The moves, reported by the Vietnamese government, are part of a series of measures the Southeast Asian industrial hub has signalled in past weeks to reduce its trade surplus with Washington, which exceeded $123 billion last year.

On Friday state-controlled energy firm PetroVietnam Power said it had signed a preliminary deal with GE Vernova for the procurement of GE equipment and services for gas-fired power plants.

Vietnam's trade ministry also announced additional provisional deals by Vietnamese and U.S. firms for the import of energy equipment, ethanol, and liquefied natural gas-related products into Vietnam.

Earlier, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh told the U.S. ambassador to Vietnam Marc Knapper that authorities were "reviewing import tariffs on goods from the United States," according to a report on the government portal.

The move was meant to "encourage increased imports of key U.S. products that Vietnam needs, especially agricultural products, liquefied gas and high-tech products," according to the report.

The energy deals were announced as Vietnam's trade minister Nguyen Hong Dien visited Washington to meet top U.S. officials, confirming an earlier Reuters report.

Dien and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer discussed ways to promote business ties "through proactively reviewing and considering the removal of trade barriers" and combat fraudulent transshipment schemes, according to a statement from the Vietnamese trade ministry.

There was no announcement from the U.S. side and it was unclear how the Trump administration was valuing the signing of provisional energy deals in the form of memoranda of understanding.

In a separate possible positive sign, a large delegation of U.S. corporations, including Apple, Boeing, and Amazon, is set to visit Vietnam next week, according to an internal list of participants seen by Reuters.

U.S. businesses and manufacturers in Vietnam voiced concerns about their operations in case of tariffs, according to a February survey.

REPEATED PLEDGES

Vietnamese officials have repeatedly indicated their willingness to meet U.S. requests on reducing trade imbalances and to facilitate U.S. business in the country, including pledging a quick licensing process for Elon Musk's Starlink satellite services.

Vietnam is one of the world's top exporters to the United States, with the U.S. market absorbing Vietnamese imports worth nearly one-third of the Southeast Asian country's economic output.

Vietnamese imports of U.S. LNG have often been mentioned by Vietnamese and U.S. officials as a means to reduce the large trade gap. The fledgling Vietnamese LNG industry currently relies on spot deals for small shipments, rather than multi-year contracts preferred by U.S. exporters, but it needs equipment to expand.

Among companies that will join the U.S. business mission to Vietnam next week is Excelerate Energy, a provider of floating terminals for LNG, and GE Vernova, according to the internal list of participants. Both signed preliminary deals with Vietnamese companies, according to reports on Friday.

In February, the trade minister said Vietnam was ready to import more farm products from the United States.

More than a quarter of U.S. exports to Vietnam last year were agricultural products, mostly cotton, soybeans and tree nuts, with a total value of $3.4 billion, according to U.S. government data.

Vietnam is also keen to buy more U.S. high-tech products, including AI-grade chips, but faces restrictions on accessing the most advanced semiconductors under rules adopted by the Biden administration.

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Boeing, Apple, GE to join US business mission to Vietnam next week, list shows

Top U.S. tech, defence and energy companies including Boeing and Apple will join a large business mission to Vietnam next week, a list of participants seen by Reuters shows, in a possible sign of confidence as the Southeast Asian country seeks to avoid U.S. trade tariffs.

The annual mission organised by the US-ASEAN Business Council, an advocacy group, takes place this year as Vietnam is reviewing its duties on U.S. goods, including on liquefied natural gas, agriculture and high-tech products, while U.S. President Donald Trump threatens to impose more tariffs on trading partners.

Executives from more than 60 U.S. large companies will travel to Vietnam next week, according to the organisers.

Among them are companies already with large operations in the country, including Apple, Intel, Coca-Cola and Nike, and also corporations that may seek to expand into Vietnam's booming economy, including Boeing, Amazon and Bell Textron, according to the list seen by Reuters.

Other participants will be Excelerate Energy, a provider of floating terminals for liquefied natural gas, and GE Vernova, which have both signed provisional deals with Vietnamese companies for the supply of gas equipment, according to a statement on Friday by PetroVietnam Power, a state-controlled energy firm.

Vietnamese officials have repeatedly said they want to boost imports of LNG products and services from the United States as a way of reducing the country's trade surplus with Washington, which totalled more than $123 billion in 2024.

The U.S. companies will meet top Vietnamese officials, including Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and the General Secretary of the ruling Communist Party To Lam, according to an internal agenda seen by Reuters.

U.S. companies in Vietnam have voiced concerns about their operations in Vietnam, a key manufacturing base for multinational companies, if Trump imposes tariffs on the country.

Exxon Mobil, which controls Vietnam's largest although so far untapped gas field, is also joining the mission, the list shows.

Boeing, which has agreements with two Vietnam airlines for the sale of up to 250 planes, is also attending, as it did in past years, according to the list.

Boeing and Bell Textron are among companies that have been in talks for years with Vietnam for the possible sale of helicopters and other military equipment.

Big U.S. financial firms are also on the list, including JPMorgan, Visa, Mastercard and Warburg Pincus.

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