President Trump says that Vietnam has agreed to allow U.S. farm products into the country duty free. (Capital Press file photo)

President Trump said Vietnam has agreed to eliminate tariffs on U.S. goods, potentially creating trade opportunities for Pacific Northwest crops such as apples, cherries and potatoes.

Trump announced the trade deal in a social media post July 2. The U.S. will impose a 20% tariff on Vietnamese products shipped directly to the U.S., while Vietnam will let in U.S. products duty free, Trump said.

“It will be a Great Deal of Cooperation between our two Countries,” the president said. “… Vietnam will do something that they have never done before, give the United States of America TOTAL ACCESS to their markets for Trade.

“In other words, they will ‘OPEN THEIR MARKET TO THE UNITED STATES,’ meaning that, we will be able to sell our product into Vietnam at ZERO Tariff.”

The White House did not immediately release any other details about the agreement, including when it would take effect or whether any goods would be exempted from the deal. Trump imposed a 46% tariff on Vietnamese goods on April 2, one of the highest of the “Liberation Day” tariffs. The tariff was suspended while the U.S. and Vietnam began trade talks.

The Vietnamese government said in April it expected to reach an agreement to stabilize trade relations between the countries. Trump said he made the deal after speaking with Vietnamese General Secretary To Lam. “Dealing with General Secretary To Lam, which I did personally, was an absolute pleasure,” Trump wrote.

The U.S. exported $3.85 billion worth of agricultural products to Vietnam in 2024, making it the ninth-largest foreign market for U.S. farmers and ranchers, according to the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.

U.S. farm exports to Vietnam could increase significantly under an agreement that eliminates tariffs, according to farm groups.

Vietnam generally imposes high tariffs on U.S. farm goods. Other agricultural exporting countries — such as Australia, Chile and Canada — have tariff-free trade agreements with Vietnam, putting U.S. exports at a further price disadvantage.

Vietnam lets in frozen fries tariff-free from Canada, Australia and New Zealand, but imposes a 12% tariff on U.S. frozen fries. The U.S. exported $3 million worth of fries to Vietnam in 2024, but the market could grow to $40 million a year if the tariff was eliminated, the American Potato Trade Alliance estimates.

Vietnam places an 8% tariff on U.S. apples and a 10% tariff on cherries and pears. Eliminating the tariffs could increase apple and cherry sales by $10 million to $25 million a year and pear sales by about $10 million, according to the Northwest Horticultural Council.

Vietnam is a potential high-growth market for blueberries, but only if its 15% tariff on fresh blueberries and 30% tariff on frozen and dried blueberries are lowered or eliminated, according to the North American Blueberry Council.

The U.S. sold less than $600,000 worth of cranberry products to Vietnam in 2024. Vietnam could be a $5 million to $10 million a year market if it eliminated its 25% tariff on cranberry concentrate and 30% tariff on sweetened dried cranberries, according to the Cranberry Institute.

The U.S. sold $43 million worth of beef to Vietnam in 2024. Sales would increase if the 30% tariff on U.S. beef was eliminated, according to the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. Australia, New Zealand and Canada beef producers have duty-free access to Vietnam.