US Treasury's Bessent says good tariff deal with Japan still possible
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RTHK
an hour ago
- RTHK
LDP setback looms in Japan upper house election
LDP setback looms in Japan upper house election Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba says he plans to stay on despite what appears to be an election setback. Photo: Reuters Japan's shaky ruling coalition is likely to lose control of the upper house, exit polls showed after Sunday's election, potentially heralding political turmoil as a tariff deadline with the United States looms. While the ballot does not directly determine whether Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's minority government falls, it heaps pressure on the embattled leader who also lost control of the more powerful lower house in October. Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and coalition partner Komeito need 50 seats to secure the 248-seat upper chamber in an election where half the seats were up for grabs. They are forecast to hold 32 to 51 seats, the exit poll by public broadcaster NHK showed. Other broadcasters forecast the ruling coalition would return 41-43 seats. If the coalition drops below 46 seats, it would mark its worst result since it was formed in 1999. That comes on top of its worst showing in 15 years in October's lower house election, a vote which has left Ishiba's administration vulnerable to no-confidence motions and calls from within his own party for leadership change. Speaking two hours after polls closed to public broadcaster NHK, Ishiba said he "solemnly" accepted the "harsh result". Asked whether he intended to stay on as prime minister and party leader, he said "that's right". "We are engaged in extremely critical tariff negotiations with the United States... we must never ruin these negotiations. It is only natural to devote our complete dedication and energy to realising our national interests," he later told TV Tokyo. Japan, the world's fourth largest economy, faces a deadline of August 1 to strike a trade deal with the United States or face punishing tariffs in its largest export market. The main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party is projected to win 18 to 30 seats, from 22 held previously, NHK's exit poll showed. The far-right Sanseito party, birthed on YouTube a few years ago, has been the surprise package with its "Japanese First" campaign and warnings about a "silent invasion" of foreigners. It is forecast to win 10-15 seats in the chamber, up from one held previously, yet it holds only three seats in the lower house. Opposition parties advocating for tax cuts and welfare spending have struck a chord with voters, the exit polls showed, as rising consumer prices – particularly a jump in the cost of rice – have sowed frustration at the government's response. "The LDP was largely playing defence in this election, being on the wrong side of a key voter issue," said David Boling, a director at consulting firm Eurasia Group. "Polls show that most households want a cut to the consumption tax to address inflation, something that the LDP opposes. Opposition parties seized on it and hammered that message home." The LDP has been urging for fiscal restraint, with one eye on a very jittery government bond market, as investors worry about Japan's ability to refinance the world's largest debt pile. (Reuters)
South China Morning Post
2 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Donald Trump and Xi Jinping tipped to meet ahead of or during Apec summit in South Korea
This year's Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea is probably the best opportunity for Xi Jinping and Donald Trump to meet in person this year, multiple sources have said. They said Trump might visit China before going to the Apec summit between October 30 and November 1, or he could meet his Chinese counterpart on the sidelines of the Apec event. According to South Korean media reports, Xi plans to attend the event in Gyeongju, but Trump's participation is yet to be confirmed. Earlier this month Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had their first face-to-face meeting – a potentially important step towards the two presidents meeting. Meanwhile, in a phone call last month, Xi invited Trump and his wife to visit China, an invitation the US president reciprocated. Rubio told reporters after meeting Wang that there was a 'strong desire on both sides' for a meeting between the two presidents. US-China relations have fluctuated since Trump returned to the White House in late January and threatened heavy tariffs of up to 145 per cent on Chinese goods. Since then, however, both sides have worked to stabilise relations, agreeing on a preliminary trade deal that eases China's rare-earth export restrictions and US technology trade barriers.
South China Morning Post
3 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
The future of surveillance tech is already here – in the US, not China
Out of story ideas about China? One default topic for Western hacks is to warn against the repressive nature of China's pervasive 'hi-tech' public surveillance. But a recent one in The New York Times takes the cake. Forgive the long quote, but it helps to fill up column space. It's also necessary to show the person's pathos or value system. I don't know. But here goes: 'I heard some surprising refrains on my recent travels through China. 'Leave your bags here,' a Chinese acquaintance or tour guide would suggest when I ducked off the streets into a public bathroom. 'Don't worry,' they'd say and shrug when I temporarily lost sight of my young son in the crowds. 'The explanation always followed: 'Nobody will do anything,' they'd say knowingly. Or: 'There's no crime.' And then, always: 'There are so many cameras!' I couldn't imagine such blasé faith in public safety back when I last lived in China, in 2013, but on this visit it was true: Cameras gawked from poles, flashed as we drove through intersections, lingered on faces as we passed through stations or shops.' The writer, an American, is troubled. 'I felt that I'd gotten a taste of our own American future,' she wrote. 'Wasn't this, after all, the logical endpoint of an evolution already under way in America?' Oh dear! In fact, high-resolution public security cameras with facial recognition features are so yesterday's tech. The Times article is titled, 'Can we see our future in China's cameras?' Well, no, lady, you want to see your future, go back to your own country.
