
US auto tariffs on Japan may not be cut swiftly to 15%: negotiator
"It may take time," Akazawa said, after Japan and the United States struck a trade deal last week that will set tariffs on Japanese cars and other products at 15 percent.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

4 hours ago
Japan PM Ishiba Unlikely to Announce View on WWII Soon
News from Japan Politics Aug 2, 2025 22:35 (JST) Tokyo, Aug. 2 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has decided not to announce his view on World War II on Aug. 15, the 80th anniversary of his country's surrender in the war, sources said Saturday. Ishiba had also considered announcing the view on Sept. 2, the date when Japan signed the surrender document in 1945, but no such announcement is likely to be made that day, senior officials of the government and Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party said. Ishiba is still seeking an appropriate time to announce his view, which would be based on the results of a review of the war. But some expect that it would be difficult to make such an announcement, which could intensify calls for his resignation that emerged within the LDP following the party's rout in the July 20 election for the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of parliament. Japan had issued a prime minister's statement to mark each of the 50th, 60th and 70th anniversaries of the country's surrender in the war. The tradition could be broken by Ishiba. [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press


Nikkei Asia
9 hours ago
- Nikkei Asia
Toyota expands procurement of Chinese parts in Thailand
Toyota Motor looks to use more Chinese components in Thailand, the home of its biggest production hub in Southeast Asia. (Photo by Yuki Kohara) KENYA AKAMA BANGKOK -- Toyota Motor is expanding procurement of Chinese parts in Thailand, home to its largest Southeast Asian production hub, seeking less costly components to improve the competitiveness of a new electrified model scheduled for 2028. The Japanese automaker has begun full-fledged procurement of components made by Chinese companies in Thailand, sources say. It connected Thailand's Summit Group, a major supplier in the country, with China's Wuhu Yuefei Sound-absorbing New Materials. The two companies formed a joint venture in January and plan to build a Thai plant that produces parts for Toyota, a source said.


Asahi Shimbun
10 hours ago
- Asahi Shimbun
Iran calls on Japan to join it in campaign to abolish WMDs
Iran's foreign minister is calling on Japan to join Tehran in leading a global movement to abolish weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). Seyed Abbas Araghchi submitted an opinion piece to The Asahi Shimbun and other Japanese media prior to the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. 'Japan and Iran must lead a global movement for the total abolition of all WMDs: nuclear, chemical and biological,' he wrote. He pointed out that Iran shared the pain and suffering of WMDs with Japan as it was targeted with chemical weapons in its war against Iraq in the 1980s. He called the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities on Aug. 6 and Aug. 9, 1945, 'a testament to the devastating power of nuclear weapons.' 'Many survivors carry physical and psychological wounds that time has not healed,' Araghchi wrote. 'They have lived their lives in the shadow of those nuclear flashes, turning their trauma into tireless advocacy for peace and disarmament.' In June, during a NATO summit meeting, U.S. President Donald Trump equated the U.S. attack against three nuclear facilities in Iran that month with the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He told reporters, 'That hit ended the war. I don't want to use an example of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. But that was essentially the same thing. That ended that war.' Araghchi took issue with Trump's comment, saying: 'The remark was more than a historical misstep; it was a deep insult to the memories of the dead and the dignity of those still living with the consequences of those bombings.' He added that in Iran, 'the comparison was received with particular pain and fury.' In 1987 during the Iran-Iraq war, the city of Sardasht in northwestern Iran came under a mustard gas attack from Iraq that killed about 130 Iranians and left several thousand with permanent disabilities. Based on that experience, Araghchi wrote that Iran 'has suffered from the effects of WMDs in its own modern history.' He added: 'Few nations understand, as deeply as ours, the irreversible impact of WMDs. We must raise our collective voice to say: never again.' Araghchi did not touch upon Iran's claim that its uranium enrichment program was for peaceful purposes. Israel bombed Iranian nuclear facilities and air defense system on grounds it had to remove the threat of Iranian nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. Iran retaliated with ballistic missile attacks on Israel. The United States joined its ally Israel and bombed Iranian nuclear facilities. After 12 days of fighting a cease-fire agreement was reached by Iran and Israel. * * * Seyed Abbas Araghchi was born in 1962 and served as Iranian ambassador to Japan between 2008 and 2011. After serving as deputy foreign minister, he was appointed foreign minister in August 2024.