Japan's chief negotiator on US tariffs, Ryosei Akazawa, said on Monday that the agenda for the next round of talks between Tokyo and Washington was still being finalized, expressing hope that he would meet with Treasury Secretary Scott Besant during his next visit to the US, Reuters reported, BTA reported.
Akazawa, who returned from Washington today, told reporters at Haneda Airport that the agreement would only be concluded after full agreement was reached on all individual issues. "Therefore, I will not comment on how far we've come," he noted.
On April 2, Trump imposed "reciprocal" tariffs on more than 180 countries, including Japan. Washington imposed 25 percent tariffs on Japanese cars, steel and aluminum, a heavy blow to the country's economy, which relies heavily on car exports to the United States. Shortly afterwards, Trump postponed the entry into force of the new tariffs by 90 days and allowed trading partners to negotiate with the United States during that time.
Tokyo and Washington agreed last month to accelerate negotiations between themselves on import tariffs after making some progress in laying the groundwork for expanding bilateral trade and reaching a "mutually beneficial deal," Kyodo news agency recalls.