Vietnam cracking down on Chinese goods falsely labelled and shipped to US to avoid tariffs
- Fraudulent cases discovered by the government include packaging on Chinese goods being changed to say ‘made in Vietnam’
- Vietnam’s exports to the US have surged this year at the same time that China’s shipments to America have slumped
The customs department has detected dozens of fraudulent certificates of product origin and illegal transfers of goods ranging from agriculture and textile to steel and aluminium, the Vietnamese government said on its website on Sunday.
Do Van Sinh, a standing member of the National Assembly’s economic committee, said Vietnam is concerned it may be punished by the US for allowing fake “made in Vietnam” products to be exported to America, according to the government’s post.
Fraudulent cases discovered by the government include packaging on Chinese goods being changed to say “made in Vietnam” before certificates of origin are processed. It cited an example of the US customs department uncovering Chinese plywood being shipped to America via a Vietnamese company.
Customs officials in Vietnam are strengthening their supervision and inspection of goods to crack down on the practice, the government said.
Vietnam is already under scrutiny from US authorities after the Treasury Department added the nation to a watch list for currency manipulation last month. Vietnam has said its exchange rate will not be used to create an unfair trade advantage.