President Trump mentioned Japan is ready to kick off tariff negotiations with the US in Washington on Wednesday — changing into one of many first international locations to check his willingness to relent on the sweeping tariffs.
“Japan is coming in in the present day to barter Tariffs, the price of navy help, and ‘TRADE FAIRNESS’,” Trump mentioned in a Fact Social publish.
“I’ll attend the assembly, together with Treasury & Commerce Secretaries. Hopefully one thing might be labored out which is sweet (GREAT!) for Japan and the USA!”
It comes a day after the Trump administration mentioned it had been offered with gives from no less than 15 nations for bespoke commerce offers following the president’s announcement final week of a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs.
Greater than 75 international locations have reached out to request talks, too.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who’s slated to hitch the talks with Tokyo’s prime commerce negotiator Ryosei Akazawa, has mentioned there’s a “first mover benefit” given the variety of international locations attempting to hash out offers.
Forward of the 90-day pause, Japan was hit with 24% levies on exports to the US. A ten% common charge nonetheless stays in place, although, as does a 25% obligation for vehicles — a mainstay of Japan’s export financial system.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba had mentioned Monday that his nation wouldn’t be dashing right into a deal – and didn’t plan on making enormous concessions.
Nonetheless, Ishiba has, no less than for now, dominated out retaliatory tariffs.
Information of the sit-down, in the meantime, sparked optimism amongst some economists.
“I’m assured that Japan and the US will have the ability to work out a superb deal that advantages each nations, opens extra client markets to one another’s exporters, and accounts for the navy support we have now offered to Japan for many years,” EJ Antoni, an economist with the Heritage Basis, mentioned.
“These negotiations are finally about making commerce extra free, not much less. It’s additionally crucial that we proceed isolating China from its geographical and financial neighbors, making Japan a key early ally on this course of.”
Kurt Tong, a managing associate at The Asia Group consultancy agency, urged Japan might face difficulties although due to the leverage the US already has.
“The problem for the Japanese group is that the USA has created an enormous quantity of leverage for itself, unilaterally,” Tong, who’s a former State Division official, mentioned.
“The US is providing to not hit Japan with sticks, and Japan is caught ready of providing an entire lot of carrots. And from their perspective, it looks like financial coercion.”
The precise scope of Wednesday’s discussions wasn’t instantly clear.
The White Home has already mentioned it desires to resolve different points with its shut ally, together with quantity Tokyo pays in direction of the price of internet hosting US troops in Japan.
The sitdown might additionally deal with power tasks and the thorny difficulty of trade charges.
With Put up wires
