US President Donald Trump, who is in Kuala Lumpur to attend a summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, signed reciprocal trade deals with his Malaysian and Cambodian counterparts as well as a framework trade pact with Thailand which will let the countries work to address tariff and non-tariff barriers.
The United States would maintain a tariff rate of 19 per cent on exports from all three countries under the deals, with the levy to be reduced to zero for some goods, according to joint statements released by the White House.
The US also announced a similar framework deal with Vietnam, which has been levied with a tariff rate of 20 per cent on its exports to the United States.
Vietnam, which recorded a trade surplus of $US123 billion ($A189 billion) with the United States last year, has pledged to vastly boost its purchases of US products to reduce the trade gap between the two countries.
Trump on Sunday signed two separate US deals with Thailand and Malaysia seeking co-operation to diversify critical minerals supply chains, amid competing efforts from China in the rapidly growing sector.
Reuters reported this month that China was in talks with Malaysia on rare earths processing, with Malaysian sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional expected to partner with a Chinese firm to build a refinery in Malaysia.
China, the world's top miner and processor of rare earths, has imposed increasingly stringent export controls on its refining technology, sending global manufacturers scrambling to secure alternative supplies for critical minerals used widely in semiconductor chips, electric vehicles and military equipment.
Host Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim agreed on Sunday to refrain from banning or imposing quotas on exports to the US of critical minerals or rare earth elements, the countries said in a statement.
The statement however did not specify whether Malaysia's pledge applied to raw or processed rare earths.
Malaysia, which has an estimated 16.1 million tonnes of rare earth deposits, has banned the export of raw rare earths to prevent the loss of resources as it looks to develop its downstream sector.
The agreements were signed after Trump oversaw the signing of an enhanced ceasefire agreement between Thailand and Cambodia, following deadly border clashes between the neighbours earlier this year.
Under the deals, the four Southeast Asian countries pledged to remove trade barriers and provide preferential market access to various US goods.
The deals also include commitments in digital trade, services and investments as well as promises by the Southeast Asian countries to protect labour rights and strengthen environmental protections.
Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam further agreed to accept vehicles built to US motor vehicle safety and emissions standards, according to the statements.
Malaysia, a majority Muslim country recognised as a global leader in halal certification, agreed to streamline requirements for US products such as cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.
Trade Minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz told reporters that Malaysia had also secured tariff exemptions for aerospace equipment and pharmaceutical products as well as commodities such as palm oil, cacao and rubber.
Thailand said it would eliminate tariff barriers on approximately 99 per cent of goods and relax foreign ownership restrictions for US investment in its telecommunications sector, both countries said in a statement.
They also took note of several forthcoming commercial deals between Thai and US companies, including the purchases of agriculture products such as feed corn and soybean meal worth an estimated $US2.6 billion per year.
