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US senators call for halt of Vietnam non-market economy status review

A handful of US senators have called for a halt to a review of Vietnam’s designation as a non-market economy (NME), Politico is reporting. It cites this letter signed by US senators JD Vance, Josh Hawley, and Tom Cotton which says “the recently announced process defies both normal order and common sense”.

It argues that:

  • Not enough time has been allocated to mount a proper defence of Vietnam’s NME status; and
  • An upgrade would not draw Vietnam closer to the US and further away from China as has been argued in the past.

It also argues that Vietnam is not a market-economy because Vietnam’s government:

  • owns all the land in Vietnam,
  • controls vast portions of the banking system, and 
  • its state-owned enterprises account for a third of the country’s GDP

For more context see: US to officially review Vietnam’s non-market economy status

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