Trump says Japan will receive trade letter
US President Donald Trump says Japan will be the recipient of a letter related to trade, following pledges by his administration to send letters to countries outlining tariffs they would need to pay to the United States.
"I have great respect for Japan, they won't take our RICE, and yet they have a massive rice shortage," he said in a Truth Social post.
"We'll just be sending them a letter, and we love having them as a Trading Partner for many years to come."
Trump did not say what terms would be outlined in the letter.
Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council, told reporters at the White House that Trump "is going to finalise the frameworks we negotiated with a whole bunch of countries after the weekend".
Trump has suggested that the US will be sending letters to many countries, informing them of the new tariff rates they will face from the US after a July 9 deadline when the president's 90-day pause on "reciprocal" tariffs expires.
Hassett said of tariff negotiations with Japan that there will "still be discussions right up to the end".
Hassett also confirmed on Monday that US-Canada trade negotiations would resume after Canada scrapped plans for a digital services tax targeting US technology firms.
"Absolutely," Hassett said on Fox News Channel when asked about the talks restarting.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called Trump on Sunday evening to tell him the tax was being dropped, calling it a big victory for US tech companies.
"Very simple. Prime Minister Carney in Canada caved to President Trump and the United States of America," she said, crediting Trump's hard-line negotiating style for the shift.
"President Trump knows ... that every country on the planet needs to have good trade relationships with the United States, and it was a mistake for Canada to vow to implement that tax that would have hurt our tech companies here in the United States," she said.
Trump had asked Canada to drop the tax at a G7 meeting in Canada earlier in June, Hassett said.
"It's something that they've studied, now they've agreed to, and for sure that means that we can get back to the negotiations."
Canada's finance ministry said late on Sunday that Carney and Trump would resume trade negotiations in order to agree on a deal by July 21.
"Thank you Canada for removing your Digital Services Tax which was intended to stifle American innovation and would have been a deal breaker for any trade deal with America," US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick responded in a post on X.
Stocks hit record highs on Wall Street on Monday morning as sentiment in the markets rose amid optimism about US trade negotiations with key partners including Canada.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also struck an optimistic tone over the potential for "a flurry" of trade deals ahead of a July 9 deadline, after which 10 per cent US tariff rates on imports from many countries are set to snap back to Trump's April 2 announced rates of 11 per cent to 50 per cent.
But Bessent, speaking on Bloomberg Television, warned that countries may not get extensions from that deadline even if they are negotiating in good faith as he suggested previously.
Any extensions would be up to Trump himself, Bessent said.
Leavitt said Trump was meeting his trade team this week to set tariff rates for those countries that were not negotiating.
"He is going to set the rates for many of these countries if they don't come to the table to negotiate in good faith, and he is meeting with his trade team this week to do that," she said.
with AP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Perth Now
34 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Aust has important role as US ally, trading partner: PM
POINTS OF CONTENTION IN US-AUSTRALIA RELATIONSHIP Australia is attempting to negotiate an exemption from US tariffs, which include a 50 per cent levy on Australian steel and aluminium and a 10 per cent tariff on most other goods. But certain sticking points could threaten Australia's success. DEFENCE SPENDING * The US has urged Australia to lift its defence spending to 3.5 per cent of gross domestic product, which would cost the government tens of billions of dollars * American officials also placed more pressure on Australia after North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) allies agreed to increase their military budgets to five per cent of gross domestic product * But Australia previously agreed to grow its defence spend from two per cent of GDP to 2.3 per cent by 2033/34 and the prime minister has stood firm and supported current spending levels AUKUS * The Pentagon in June launched a 30-day review into the nuclear submarine partnership between Australia, the US and the UK to examine whether it aligned with US President Donald Trump's "America First" agenda * Australian politicians have played down the review and noted the UK conducted a similar investigation before backing the agreement BEEF IMPORTS AND BIOSECURITY * Though Australia accepts imports of beef raised and slaughtered in the US, Mr Trump's administration is demanding the government also take in beef that has been raised in Canada or Mexico before being slaughtered and processed in the US * Australia has barred the latter from import due to biosecurity concerns * Mexico's livestock tracking system could inadvertently lead producers to import beef from parts of the continent where disease outbreaks are a concern MEDIA BARGAINING CODE * Australia's media bargaining code ensures tech companies pay news outlets for their content * However, the US has already pointed to the code as an issue in its foreign trade barriers report * Canada capitulated to US demands by scrapping a digital services tax that would have targeted US tech firms, highlighting Mr Trump's desire to protect the industry * Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said he will not undermine the code in negotiations with the US PHARMACEUTICAL BENEFITS SCHEME * Australia's subsidised prescription medication scheme could be in America's sights as the US pharmaceutical lobby claimed it undervalued innovation because it keeps prices low for Australians * The president announced he would put up a "tariff wall" on countries that export pharmaceuticals to the US, though some Australian pharmaceutical companies have managed to find a way around US levies * Mr Albanese has vowed to protect the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and his government has ruled out the "Americanisation" of Australia's health system
Sydney Morning Herald
an hour ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Australia news LIVE: Anthony Albanese brushes off claims Trump insulted him; RBA expected to slash rates; Trump to host Netanyahu for talks next Monday as US presses for Gaza ceasefire
Latest posts Latest posts 12.13pm Dozens reportedly killed in strike on Gaza cafe as Netanyahu agrees to meet Trump By Michael Koziol Israeli forces killed at least 74 people in Gaza overnight, with airstrikes and gunfire that left multiple dead at a seaside cafe as Palestinians attempted to reach aid, witnesses and health officials said. One airstrike hit a seaside cafe in Gaza City crowded with women and children, Ali Abu Ateila, who was inside Al-Baqa Cafe, said. 'Without a warning, all of a sudden, a warplane hit the place, shaking it like an earthquake,' he told the Associated Press. Dozens were wounded, many critically, and 30 people were killed, the head of the Health Ministry's emergency and ambulance service in northern Gaza, Fares Awad, said. It was one of only a few businesses to continue operating during the 20-month war in Gaza and was a gathering spot for residents seeking internet access and a place to charge their phones. Videos circulating on social media showed bloodied and disfigured bodies on the ground and the wounded being carried away in blankets. Israeli forces also killed 11 people who had been seeking food in southern Gaza, according to witnesses, hospitals, and Gaza's Health Ministry. It comes before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returns to Washington next week to meet with US President Donald Trump under the weight of heavy expectation for a new ceasefire agreement in Gaza. Trump, having helped broker a truce between Israel and Iran last week after the US bombed key Iranian nuclear facilities, has made clear that ending hostilities in the wartorn Palestinian territory is his next priority. 11.49am Trump signs executive order ending US sanctions on Syria US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order ending many US economic sanctions on Syria, following through on a promise he made to the country's new interim leader. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the move was designed to 'promote and support the country's path to stability and peace.' 'This is another promise made and promise kept,' she said. The executive order is meant to 'end the country's isolation from the international financial system, setting the stage for global commerce and galvanising investments from its neighbours in the region, as well as from the United States,' Treasury's acting undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, Brad Smith, told reporters on Monday (Tuesday AEST) to preview the administration's action. Monday's actions do not rescind sanctions imposed on ousted former Syrian President Bashar Assad, his top aides, family members and officials who had been determined to have committed human rights abuses or been involved in drug trafficking or part of Syria's chemical weapons program. It also leaves intact a major set of sanctions passed by the US Congress targeting anyone doing business with or offering support to Syria's military, intelligence or other suspect institutions. While the Trump administration has passed temporary waivers on those sanctions, they can only be permanently repealed by law. Along with the lifting of economic sanctions, Monday's executive order lifts the national emergency outlined in an executive order issued by former US President George W. Bush in response to Syria's occupation of Lebanon and pursuit of weapons of mass destruction and missile programs, Treasury officials said. Five other previous executive orders related to Syria were also lifted. Sanctions targeting terrorist groups and manufacturers and sellers of the amphetamine-like stimulant Captagon will remain in place.
Perth Now
an hour ago
- Perth Now
Asian shares rise, US dollar weakens as gold jumps
Asian shares have crept higher while the dollar languished near multi-year lows as markets awaited a vote over US President Donald Trump's landmark tax and spending legislation. Global shares reached an intraday record on Monday on trade optimism, but a marathon debate in the US Senate over a bill estimated to add $US3.3 trillion ($A5 trillion) to the US debt pile weighed on sentiment. Japan's Nikkei gauge of shares sank as much as 1.1 per cent as the yen climbed on Tuesday. Oil fell for a second consecutive session and gold advanced. A vote on Trump's sweeping tax-cut and spending bill had been expected during the Asian trading day on Tuesday, but debate raged on over a long series of amendments by Republicans and the minority Democrats. Trump wants the bill passed before the July 4 Independence Day holiday. As global trade negotiators scramble to get deals done before Trump's tariff deadlines, investors are also anticipating key US labour market data on Thursday. "Trade is front and centre this week, but alongside that, we've obviously got the fate of the 'One Big Beautiful Bill', which is currently being debated in the Senate," said Ray Attrill, head of FX strategy at the National Australia Bank. Payrolls data later in the week "does have significant bearing, I think, on sentiment towards the potential timing of Fed rate cuts", he added in a podcast. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.5 per cent, led by South Korea's Kospi gauge , rising 1.8 per cent. The dollar dropped 0.3 per cent to 143.62 yen. The greenback slid 0.1 per cent to $1.1794 against the European single currency and earlier touched $1.1798, the weakest since September 2021. US crude dipped 0.4 per cent to $US64.86 ($A99.10) a barrel, weighed by expectations of an OPEC+ output hike in August. Spot gold rose 0.5 per cent to $US3,319.55 ($A5,071.88) per ounce. Pan-region Euro Stoxx 50 futures were up 0.1 per cent at while German DAX futures were up 0.2 per cent.
