Japan faces growing pressure to strike a trade deal with the US
The post Japan faces growing pressure to strike a trade deal with the US appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. Japan’s friendly, steady approach to trade talks is under pressure as President Donald Trump pushes for an agreement before new U.S. tariffs kick in on July 9. So far, Japan’s careful approach hasn’t worked, raising worries it could be an easy target as Washington pushes for quick wins. Tokyo relies on the United States for both trade and security, and has avoided direct confrontation, unlike China, which has taken a tougher stance. Japan’s chief negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, has flown to Washington seven times in recent months to continue smooth negotiations. Yet, on his most recent trip, he couldn’t meet Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in person, and he only spoke twice by phone with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, according to Bloomberg. “Most times I’m taking off from Haneda Airport without a confirmed schedule of meetings,” Akazawa said after returning to Tokyo on Tuesday. Domestic politics also shape Tokyo’s approach. officials don’t want to give up too much before the key national vote on July 20th. “The government is stuck between US expectations and domestic pressure not to give up too much before the election,” said Rintaro Nishimura of The Asia Group. Meanwhile, Trump has publicly slammed Japan for not buying enough American cars and for refusing to import U.S. rice, posting that Japan has a “massive rice shortage.” Japanese leaders have responded carefully to avoid escalating tensions, hoping for an agreement. “We expect a package to span various fields and become quite extensive,” he said, adding that both reciprocal and sector-specific tariffs must be resolved. Investors, for now, seem unfazed. “The bark is worse than the bite,” said Rajeev De Mello, a portfolio manager in Geneva, predicting that any new duties will remain around 10%. Tokyo focuses on jobs and autos as key to U.S. trade talks Tokyo’s offer to Washington…
The post Japan faces growing pressure to strike a trade deal with the US appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
Japan’s friendly, steady approach to trade talks is under pressure as President Donald Trump pushes for an agreement before new U.S. tariffs kick in on July 9. So far, Japan’s careful approach hasn’t worked, raising worries it could be an easy target as Washington pushes for quick wins. Tokyo relies on the United States for both trade and security, and has avoided direct confrontation, unlike China, which has taken a tougher stance. Japan’s chief negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, has flown to Washington seven times in recent months to continue smooth negotiations. Yet, on his most recent trip, he couldn’t meet Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in person, and he only spoke twice by phone with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, according to Bloomberg. “Most times I’m taking off from Haneda Airport without a confirmed schedule of meetings,” Akazawa said after returning to Tokyo on Tuesday. Domestic politics also shape Tokyo’s approach. officials don’t want to give up too much before the key national vote on July 20th. “The government is stuck between US expectations and domestic pressure not to give up too much before the election,” said Rintaro Nishimura of The Asia Group. Meanwhile, Trump has publicly slammed Japan for not buying enough American cars and for refusing to import U.S. rice, posting that Japan has a “massive rice shortage.” Japanese leaders have responded carefully to avoid escalating tensions, hoping for an agreement. “We expect a package to span various fields and become quite extensive,” he said, adding that both reciprocal and sector-specific tariffs must be resolved. Investors, for now, seem unfazed. “The bark is worse than the bite,” said Rajeev De Mello, a portfolio manager in Geneva, predicting that any new duties will remain around 10%. Tokyo focuses on jobs and autos as key to U.S. trade talks Tokyo’s offer to Washington…
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