Japan has stressed this week that it is not looking to sign a quick trade deal with the United States, adding that it will stick to its earlier demand that Washington end all of its newly implemented tariffs on the country.
“The slew of US tariffs including reciprocal tariffs as well as those on automobiles, car parts, steel and aluminium, are regrettable. There’s no change to our stance of seeking a review, which is to say an elimination, of them,” Japan’s top trade negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, told a regular press conference on Tuesday.
Tokyo will not rush into clinching a trade deal if doing so risked hurting the country’s interests, he added.
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Akazawa said Japan and the US held working-level trade talks in Washington on Monday. The schedule of a third round of ministerial-level negotiations was yet to be fixed, he added.
Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported on Tuesday that Akazawa will travel to Washington this week to attend the third round of talks potentially starting on Friday.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is expected to attend the talks, while Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will be absent, Kyodo reported without citing sources.
In April, US President Donald Trump imposed 10% tariffs on all countries except Canada, Mexico and China, along with higher tariff rates for many big trading partners, including Japan.
Unless it can negotiate a deal with Washington, Japan faces a 24% tariff rate starting in July.
Meanwhile, the US has not hit a pause on its 25% tariffs on automobiles and auto parts.
Japanese policymakers and ruling party lawmakers have said that they see no merit in striking a deal with the US unless the auto tariffs are lifted. The automobile industry is one of the most significant pillars of the Japanese economy.
Washington has insisted, however, that the auto tariffs have been imposed on shipments from every country and that it will not grant Japan special treatment.
Package of proposals
Japan was the first major economy to start bilateral trade talks with Washington, but it has yet to reach a deal with the Trump administration. Talks that began early this month got off to a rocky start as Japanese negotiators pressed for a review of the auto tariffs.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba told reporters at the time that there was a “wide gulf” between Tokyo and Washington’s position and the two were unable to find a common ground. He also called the auto tariffs “extremely regrettable”.
But despite that initial hope of a quick deal failing, the Nikkei newspaper reported last week that Japan may water down its demand to a reduction, rather than an elimination, of US tariffs.
Separately, a source with knowledge of the negotiations told Reuters that Japan was considering a package of proposals to gain US concessions that may include increased imports of US corn and soy, technical cooperation in shipbuilding, and revision to inspection standards for imported automobiles.
- Reuters, with additional editing by Vishakha Saxena
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