HANOI (Reuters) - The United States and Vietnam have agreed to launch negotiations for a trade agreement, the Vietnamese government said on Thursday, hours after the U.S. paused the implementation of a 46% tariff rate on Vietnam's exports for 90 days.

The two countries will consider removing as many non-tariff barriers as possible, the government said in a statement released after a meeting between Vietnam's Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington.

The Southeast Asian country, a major regional manufacturing base for many Western companies, last year had a trade surplus of more than $123 billion with the U.S., its largest export market.

Vietnam will facilitate investment by U.S. investors in the country, the statement said, adding that it will also step up its fight against trade fraud.