US investigates Viet Nam's intellectual property practices

The Trump administration on Friday opened an unfair trade practices investigation into Viet Nam's intellectual property protection policies and enforcement that may lead to new tariffs or other trade measures.

Viet Nam was identified as a priority country by the U.S. Trade Representative's office on April 30 "due to its persistent failure to resolve long-standing concerns about IP protection and enforcement," the USTR said.

Viet Nam's foreign ministry said the probe "is a procedure carried out under U.S. law" and that issues would be addressed through consultations, adding that the United States had acknowledged Viet Nam's efforts and urging an "objective and fair assessment".

Viet Nam said it remains committed to strengthening intellectual property protection and enforcement.

During President Donald Trump's first ⁠term in office, USTR used a Section 301 investigation into China's IP-misappropriation and technology-transfer practices to impose sweeping tariffs of 25% on hundreds of billions of dollars' worth of annual Chinese imports.

Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement that, while Viet Nam has taken some steps in recent years to address IP concerns, infringement "continues to impair the competitive position of U.S. innovators and creators."

"We need to see Viet Nam resolve these long-standing concerns, including on a range of IP enforcement issues, in a manner that is sustained and that deters future IP infringements," Greer said.

Leif Schneider, head of international law firm Luther in Viet Nam, said Viet Nam "has made substantial progress in modernizing its regulatory IP framework" over the past decade.

"The difficulty, ⁠however, has always been less about legislation and more about implementation. Administrative enforcement remains uneven, penalties often lack deterrent effect, and online infringement continues to outpace regulatory capacity."

The probe coincides with a surge in Viet Nam's exports to the United States, which in the first three months of this year led to a U.S. trade deficit with Viet Nam of $54.8 billion, higher than those with major exporters ⁠China and Mexico, U.S. data shows. The Trump administration has repeatedly said it wants to reduce trade deficits.

Counterfeits were widely available this week in a large wholesale market in Hanoi, and streaming websites operated from Viet Nam continued to offer pirated content despite a government ⁠crackdown launched early this month, Reuters reported.

Viet Namese authorities conducted a similar crackdown last year after the Trump administration unveiled tariffs of 46% on imports from Viet Nam, which have since been reduced to 10%. Viet Nam has been in negotiations with Washington, ⁠its largest export market, on a trade agreement for the past year.

USTR said in a Federal Register notice that it has opened a docket for public comments on the matter through July 2.

Source: Reuters