Despite election loss, Japan says seeking US trade deal by Aug. 1
"I don't have (such a concern)," Akazawa told reporters at an international airport near Washington upon his arrival, when asked whether the Japanese governing coalition's huge loss in Sunday's upper house election will make the stalled bilateral negotiations even more difficult.
"I believe that both Japan and the United States have a desire to reach some kind of agreement by then," Akazawa said, referring to the deadline when a pause on Trump's so-called reciprocal tariffs is due to expire.
Akazawa arrived in Washington for his eighth round of in-person negotiations with U.S. Cabinet members. He departed Tokyo just a day after the national election, in which Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's ruling coalition lost its majority in the House of Councillors.
The defeat, resulting from the Japanese public's frustration over rising living costs, left the coalition led by his Liberal Democratic Party with a minority in both chambers of parliament, as it failed to secure a majority in last year's election for the more powerful House of Representatives.
If there is no deal with the Trump administration by the deadline, Japan is set to face a country-specific tariff of 25 percent on its goods, which would be a further drag on its economy.
The higher tariff would come on top of auto and other hefty sector-based duties that took effect earlier this year in the name of protecting U.S. national security.
During his visit through Wednesday, Akazawa said he will seek to hold talks with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer if their respective schedules allow.
In a CNBC interview before Akazawa's arrival, Bessent said, "Our priorities are not the internal workings of the Japanese government. Our priorities are getting the best deal for the American people," when asked about the election outcome's potential impact on the ongoing talks.
During a press conference in Tokyo on Monday, Ishiba, who has vowed to stay on as prime minister, highlighted that Japan is the world's largest investor and job creator in the United States.
"Therefore, or should I say precisely because of this, we have been saying investment rather than tariffs and making various efforts in a bid to gain the understanding (of the United States)," Ishiba said.
Trump announced sweeping tariffs on April 2, targeting dozens of countries with which the United States runs trade deficits, before pausing them for 90 days to provide time for talks.
But the Trump administration has extended the pause to Aug. 1 amid little progress in its talks with major trading partners, including Japan, South Korea and the European Union.
Since the launch of Japan's talks with the United States in April, Akazawa's team has prioritized persuading the administration to review the auto tariff, which Trump raised by 25 percentage points to 27.5 percent in April.
The team has presented a set of proposals aimed at reducing Japan's trade surplus with the United States, including increasing imports of American corn and liquid natural gas.
But the United States has shown no signs of budging on the new auto tariff rate, with Trump instead ramping up pressure on Japan by repeating his frequent criticism that the key U.S. ally has been reluctant to import American cars and agricultural products.
(By Takuya Karube)
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