Kyodo News Digest: July 23, 2025
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Trump says Japan agrees to 15% reciprocal tariff under "massive" deal
WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he has struck a "massive" trade deal with Japan, under which the Asian country has agreed to a so-called reciprocal tariff of 15 percent.
"There has never been anything like it," Trump said on social media, adding that Japan will open its markets for cars, trucks, rice, certain farm products and other goods.
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Survey to start for 1st new nuclear reactor since Fukushima disaster
OSAKA - Kansai Electric Power Co. said Tuesday that it plans to begin a geological survey to replace a nuclear reactor on the premises of its Mihama nuclear power plant on the Sea of Japan coast, in what would be the first new reactor since the 2011 Fukushima disaster.
Currently, the No. 3 unit is the only reactor in operation at the Mihama station in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture, while the other two units are set to be decommissioned.
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Support for PM Ishiba Cabinet hits record-low 23% after election loss
TOKYO - The approval rating for Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's Cabinet dipped to just under 23 percent, the lowest level since he took office in October, a Kyodo News poll showed Tuesday, underscoring his continuing plight following his ruling coalition's major setback in the weekend House of Councillors election.
Although Ishiba is facing growing calls from within his Liberal Democratic Party to step down to take responsibility for Sunday's election drubbing, respondents of the survey were divided on the issue, with 51.6 percent demanding his resignation and 45.8 percent thinking otherwise.
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PM Ishiba faces resignation calls from within LDP after election loss
TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Tuesday faced a barrage of criticism and calls from within his own Liberal Democratic Party to resign after the ruling coalition's bruising setback in the House of Councillors election.
Ishiba, who has expressed his intention to stay on as Japanese leader, is arranging to meet with former Japanese prime ministers, including Taro Aso and Fumio Kishida as early as Wednesday, sources with knowledge of the plan said. The LDP heavyweights may discuss the next course of action.
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Visa told by Japan antitrust watchdog to reform credit info system
TOKYO - Japan's antitrust watchdog said Tuesday it had told Visa Worldwide Pte Ltd. to reform its business practices after concluding that the firm restricted and pressured card companies to use its credit information system.
It marks the first administrative action taken by the Japan Fair Trade Commission against a credit card company. The commission said global credit card brand Visa Inc.'s Singaporean unit, which manages the Asia-Pacific region including Japan, had charged higher fees to other credit card firms that did not use its network to check credit information.
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Trump says Philippines agrees to 19% tariff
WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday he has reached a trade deal with the Philippines that includes a tariff of 19 percent on imports from the Southeast Asian country.
Trump announced the deal on social media shortly after concluding his talks with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the White House. He added the Philippines will open its market to the United States without tariffs.
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U.S. Treasury chief hints at extending 90-day tariff truce with China
WASHINGTON - U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday he will meet with a Chinese delegation next week in Sweden, suggesting that a 90-day tariff truce with China, set to expire Aug. 12, could be extended as negotiations have entered a "new level."
Bessent said in a Fox Business interview that his third round of trade talks with senior Chinese officials is scheduled for next Monday and July 29 in Stockholm.
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Nobel committee chair stresses "nuclear taboo" during Hiroshima visit
HIROSHIMA - Jorgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, during a visit Tuesday to Hiroshima stressed that the "nuclear taboo" must not be confined to the atomic-bombed city but spread worldwide.
Frydnes' trip to Japan comes after Nihon Hidankyo, Japan's leading group of atomic bomb survivors, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize last year, with him praising the group for its efforts to achieve a nuclear-free world through witness testimony.
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