Japan won't fixate on July 9 in US trade talks

Business Times

6 hours ago

[TOKYO] Japan won't fixate on the looming date for so-called reciprocal tariffs to go back to higher levels, Tokyo's top trade negotiator said, signalling that the Asian nation stands ready for the possibility that talks will drag on.
'To avoid any misunderstanding, I would like to confirm that I have not said at all that July 9 is the deadline for negotiations between Japan and the US,' Economic Revitalisation Minister Ryosei Akazawa told reporters on Friday (Jun 20) in Tokyo. 'Japan and the US are in regular communication through various channels, and we will continue to consider what is most effective and engage in appropriate consultations.'
Akazawa deflected a question over whether Japan will seek an extension of the deadline for the across-the-board tariffs. The US is poised to return the duties to their original levels on July 9 for many nations, which would mean an increase to 24 per cent from 10 per cent at present for Japan. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has indicated the US may grant an extension to countries that are negotiating in good faith.
Asked what Japan would do if the levy returns to 24 per cent or the US puts out a different level unilaterally past the deadline, Akazawa hinted at optimism for an extension.
'We are proceeding with the negotiations in good faith and so we understand that various matters will proceed under that premise,' he said after attending a ruling Liberal Democratic Party's tariff task force meeting.
The task force didn't urge him to seek an extension of the July 9 deadline, either, Akazawa said.
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'In negotiations, setting a deadline and trying to wrap things up by a certain date weaken your position,' he said. 'Once you try to wrap up negotiations, you will have no choice but to accept the outcome.'
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and US President Donald Trump failed to reach a deal earlier this week on the sidelines of the Group of Seven leaders' summit in Canada, despite holding three phone calls to discuss the tariffs prior to their in-person meeting.
Akazawa on Friday said he's yet to schedule the next round of negotiations with his US counterparts and that Japan won't set a specific deadline for the talks. He once again described the trade discussions as similar to 'walking through fog,' a phrase he used before the G-7 gathering.
The Japanese trade negotiator also hinted at some trouble in vying for time with the US when various matters including rising tensions in the Middle East compete for Washington's attention.
'It is also possible that the US side may find it difficult to allocate sufficient time domestically to make substantial progress in the Japan-US negotiations,' Akazawa said. 'This is truly the case for both sides. We are not solely doing the tariff negotiations.'
Akazawa spoke a day after Ishiba met with opposition party leaders, who came away from the conference with the notion that Japan's trade surplus in autos with the US is a sticking point between the two sides.
As with other nations, Japan has also been slapped with a 25 per cent tariff on cars and related parts as well as a 50 per cent levy on steel and aluminium.
'Both Japan and the US have national interests that can't be compromised,' Akazawa said. 'Protecting the profits of the automotive industry, which is our key industry, is in Japan's interest.' BLOOMBERG