At the heart of Trump’s latest trade deal with Vietnam and talks with other trading partners is an effort to counter what he sees as China’s unfair practices to circumvent U.S. tariffs.

The Vietnam agreement comes amid a broader administration push to finalize trade deals ahead of Trump's self-imposed "90 in 90" deadline—a period of 90 days for 90 targeted trade deals or renegotiations globally.

European Union negotiators have failed so far to achieve a breakthrough in trade negotiations with the Trump administration and may now seek to extend the status quo to avoid tariff hikes, five EU diplomats briefed on the talks said on Friday.