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Japan Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Japan Times
Japan offering fund to aid U.S. shipbuilding as part of tariff negotiations
Japan has offered to establish a fund to help revive the U.S. shipbuilding industry as part of tariff negotiations between the two countries, it was learned Wednesday. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump aims to strengthen his country's shipbuilding capacity from an economic security perspective, and Tokyo hopes that offering cooperation in this field will lead to concessions from Washington in tariff talks. On Wednesday, the steering committee of the House of Councilors approved a four-day trip to the United States from Thursday by economic revitalization minister Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's chief tariff negotiator. During the trip, Akazawa will hold the fourth ministerial-level session of the tariff talks on Friday local time. The session is expected to be attended by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who was absent from the previous session. The committee also approved Akazawa's three-day trip to France from Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Akazawa voiced his eagerness to advance the tariff negotiations with the United States, even during the trip to France. "If we have an opportunity to engage in tariff discussions with the United States, we will prioritize that above all else," he told reporters at the Prime Minister's Office. In the global shipbuilding market, China holds a dominant share. That has sparked national security concerns in the United States, where the shipbuilding industry has declined. The United States has called on allies including Japan to help revive the sector. "The United States is interested in whether U.S. warships can be repaired in Japan," Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba told reporters in Maizuru, Kyoto Prefecture, on Sunday. Referring to the growing importance of Arctic shipping routes and icebreakers, Ishiba also noted that "Japan has an advantage in icebreaker technology." Also on the agenda for the upcoming tariff session is Japan's support for maintaining repair docks in the United States. Tokyo hopes to accelerate the tariff talks, with a view to striking an agreement at a possible bilateral summit on the sidelines of the Group of Seven leaders' meeting next month. As the two countries are still divided over matters such as additional auto tariffs, it remains to be seen how much middle ground the two sides can find on shipbuilding cooperation.
Reuters
27-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
How the EU can respond to US economic warfare: podcast
Follow on Apple or Spotify. Listen on the Reuters app. As President Donald Trump threatens tariffs, Brussels is also worrying about Washington using sanctions against it. In this episode of The Big View podcast, Agathe Demarais of the European Council on Foreign Relations talks about how the bloc should deploy its own weapons. Follow @ (The host is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.) Further Reading Why financial warfare could backfire on the US: podcast Europe will struggle to slip US economic chokehold No brain, no brawn: Trump 2.0 makes an EU Economic Security Network essential Learning from shipwrecked sailors: Three ways Europeans can weather the Trump storm A User's Guide to Restructuring the Global Trading System Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit to opt-out of targeted advertising.
Japan Times
24-05-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
Japan looks to use U.S. shipbuilding cooperation as card in tariff talks
Japan has proposed cooperating with the United States in the field of shipbuilding, as part of the two countries' economic security partnership, sources have said. The Japanese side also plans to send industry ministry officials to an energy-related conference to be held in Alaska, where a liquefied natural gas development project is planned, informed sources said Friday. By highlighting its cooperative stance toward the United States, the Japanese government hopes to fend off tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump's administration. Stay updated on the trade wars. Quality journalism is more crucial than ever. Help us get the story right. For a limited time, we're offering a discounted subscription plan. Unlimited access US$30 US$18 /mo FOREVER subscribe NOW Japanese economic revitalization minister Ryosei Akazawa, the country's chief negotiator in tariff negotiations with the U.S., held a third round of talks in Washington on Friday. It was not immediately clear if Akazawa had conveyed the shipbuilding idea to his counterparts. As part of that plan, the government will launch measures to revive the domestic industry, which has long been in decline, the Yomiuri Shimbun daily reported Friday. It will support the private sector in the construction and repair of shipbuilding docks and in starting businesses overseas. Japan aims to use the move as a negotiating card in the ongoing tariff talks, as the Trump White House is keen on the shipbuilding issue. China has taken an overwhelming share of that global market, triggering growing economic security concerns. The government will reportedly include specific measures in its Basic Policy on Economic and Fiscal Management and Reform, also known as the 'big-boned policy,' and secure a necessary budget. It will also support domestic investment, technology development and establishing data infrastructure in the shipbuilding industry through the Economic Security Promotion Law, the Yomiuri reported. As for possible Japan-U.S. cooperation, the government is considering a 'Japan-U.S. fund for reviving the shipbuilding industry.'
Japan Times
23-05-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
Ishiba and Trump speak as Akazawa heads to Washington
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday morning in a call initiated by the president, offering hope of a breakthrough in tariff negotiations between Japan and the United States. It was the second phone call between the two leaders since early April . During the 45-minute conversation, the leaders exchanged views on the tariff negotiations, cooperation on economic security and the U.S. president's recent trip to the Middle East, Ishiba told reporters after the call. The call was proposed by Trump, Ishiba said. While they did not go into a point-by-point discussion of the tariff negotiations during the call, Ishiba said he felt they reaffirmed common ground on a number of issues. Stay updated on the trade wars. Quality journalism is more crucial than ever. Help us get the story right. For a limited time, we're offering a discounted subscription plan. Unlimited access US$30 US$18 /mo FOREVER subscribe NOW 'I believe what was confirmed throughout the call was the intention on both sides to work hard and build a win-win relationship," Ishiba said. 'I truly felt that we shared many common understandings and reaffirmed our shared awareness on a variety of issues.' The call was made while Japan's chief tariff negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, was en route to Washington to attend the third round of high-level tariff talks with his American counterparts. At the previous meeting earlier in May , the two sides agreed to hold high-level talks 'intensively' from mid-May onward. 'I expressed hopes that these talks will be productive, and President Trump agreed with that sentiment,' Ishiba said, adding that they both look forward to an in-person meeting next month, which is set to take place during the Group of Seven meetings in Canada. Chief tariff negotiator Ryosei Akazawa speaks to reporters at Haneda Airport in Tokyo on Friday before flying to Washington for a third round of high-level tariff talks with his U.S. counterparts. | Jiji News reports suggest that the two sides are eyeing the G7 meeting as a likely setting to announce a framework trade deal. After the call, Ishiba said he might also visit the U.S. at some point depending on the circumstances, although no specific schedule has been set yet. 'Our position — that we have consistently called for the removal of the tariff measures — remains unchanged,' Ishiba told reporters after the call. The clock is ticking for Akazawa, who arguably has the toughest job in Japan as he tries to get the United States to agree to a trade ceasefire. A 24% 'reciprocal tariff' on almost all Japanese exports to the U.S. will kick in again if no agreement is reached by early July. Much hinges upon his ability to persuade Washington to bring the 25% levies on automobiles and auto parts into the negotiations. While the U.S. has only shown willingness to negotiate the higher-rate 'reciprocal' tariffs, Japan has resolutely rejected the idea of a deal that does not include all the levies in place. Japan's position remains unchanged in calling for the U.S. to review the tariff measures, Akazawa told reporters before boarding the plane on Friday morning. He had said earlier this week that when Japan asks the U.S. to review the tariffs, it wants the U.S. to eliminate them . 'An agreement cannot be reached unless it is mutually satisfactory — a true win-win,' Akazawa told reporters at Haneda Airport in Tokyo before boarding the plane on Friday morning. 'We must listen carefully to the various proposals and ideas from the U.S. side, and work to find common ground between our respective positions.'
CNA
23-05-2025
- Business
- CNA
Japan PM presses Trump on tariffs ahead of new talks
TOKYO: Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said on Friday (May 23) that he had again pressed United States President Donald Trump on tariffs, in a phone call ahead of fresh talks on easing the levies. Japan, a key US ally and its biggest investor, is subject to the same 10 per cent baseline tariffs imposed on most nations plus steeper levies on cars, steel and aluminium. Trump also announced 24 per cent "reciprocal" tariffs on Japan in early April, but later paused them along with similar measures on other countries until early July. Ishiba said he spoke with Trump for 45 minutes on Friday morning - Thursday evening in Washington - and that a "broad range of topics were discussed, including tariffs and economic security". "I conveyed to him Japan's position on US tariffs," Ishiba told a news conference in Tokyo, adding that there was "no change to our calls for the removal of tariffs". "As I've said before, it's not just about tariffs but about investment. There will also be no change to our position that Japan and the US will cooperate on generating employment in the US," he said. The comments came as Japan's tariffs envoy, economic revitalisation minister Ryosei Akazawa, left for Washington for a third round of talks. "The series of tariff measures taken by the US are regrettable. We'll strongly demand a review of these measures," Akazawa told reporters at Tokyo's Haneda airport. "But we have to reach an agreement, so it has to be win-win for both sides. We'll listen carefully to the various proposals and ideas of the US side, and look for common ground between the two sides," he said. Public broadcaster NHK and other Japanese media reported, citing government sources, that US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent would not attend the talks this time. Akazawa would travel again to Washington on May 30, the reports said. Trump's 25 per cent auto tariffs are particularly painful for Tokyo, with roughly 8 per cent of all Japanese jobs tied to the sector. Early this month, the Trump administration also slapped a new 25 per cent import tax on auto parts, including engines and transmissions. At the White House in February, Ishiba had promised Trump that yearly Japanese investment would increase to US$1 trillion. "Although the recent US-China and US-UK trade deals indicate that Washington is aiming to de-escalate trade tensions, Japan-US negotiations have made little headway," said Stefan Angrick at Moody's Analytics. "Japan's position as the world's largest foreign investor in the US hasn't shielded it from tariff threats, so promising more investment is an unconvincing bargaining chip," he added.
