Vietnam’s government has initiated urgent talks with the United States in an attempt to avert a planned 46% tariff that could severely disrupt its export economy. The emergency negotiations, held in Jeju, South Korea, after the 31st APEC Ministerial Meeting on Trade, mark the first formal ministerial-level discussion between the two countries on this critical issue. This tariff would heavily impact Vietnam’s already significant exports to the US, which is currently its biggest market. Vietnam has been proactively taking measures like reducing tariffs for US-bound goods and cracking down on Chinese exports to mitigate the potential damage. However, a substantial tariff could disrupt hundreds of factories and assembly plants fueling Vietnam’s export engine across various industries including electronics, furniture and clothing.