Japan tariff negotiator held 'in-depth' talks with Lutnick, Japan government says
Trump this week hammered Japan over what he said was Tokyo's reluctance to import US-grown rice, and accusing Japan of engaging in "unfair" autos trade.
Japan's Economic Revitalization Minister Ryosei Akazawa speaks to the press upon his arrival at Haneda Airport, a day after ministerial talks on tariffs, with US President Donald Trump joining the negotiators, in Tokyo, Japan, Apr 18, 2025. (Photo: REUTERS/Issei Kato)
TOKYO: Japan's tariff negotiator Ryosei Akazawa held "in-depth exchanges" over the phone with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Thursday (Jul 3) and Saturday, the Japanese government said.
A pause on a 24 per cent reciprocal tariff on imports from Japan expires on Jul 9, although US President Donald Trump has suggested the rate could be even higher.
The Japanese government also said in a statement that it intends to continue actively coordinating with the US side on the matter, as it worked to avert higher tariffs.
The White House declined to comment on the report, referring only to Trump's recent comments on Japan.
Trump this week hammered Japan over what he said was Tokyo's reluctance to import US-grown rice, and accusing Japan of engaging in "unfair" autos trade.
Japan has in fact imported historically high volumes of US rice in recent months as domestically grown rice has skyrocketed in price since last year.
It was unclear if Trump would make good his pledge to skip further trade negotiations with Japan and send it a letter with a specific tariff rate, on top of the 10 per cent already in effect on most trading partners. On Friday he said he had signed letters to 12 countries and they would be going out on Monday, but did not identify them.
He expressed doubt that a deal could be reached with Japan on Tuesday, and suggested he could impose a tariff of 30 per cent or 35 per cent on imports from Japan, well above the 24 per cent tariff rate he announced on Apr 2.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Wednesday said he was determined to protect his country's national interests as trade negotiations with the US struggled, noting that his country was the largest investor in the United States.
Tokyo has yet to secure a trade deal after nearly three months of negotiations as it scrambles to find ways to get Washington to exempt Japan's automakers from 25 per cent automobile industry-specific tariffs, which are hurting the country's manufacturing sector.
