TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (pic) said he won’t rush into a trade deal with the US that would hurt the nation’s interests, while an opposition party head said the premier still sees a large gap in stances between the two nations.
Ishiba is expected to meet US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the Group of Seven leaders gathering in Canada starting Sunday (June 15), but Ishiba said the time and date for the bilateral hasn’t been set.
"If there’s progress before I meet the president, that’s in and of itself good,” Ishiba told reporters in Tokyo on Thursday.
"But what’s important is to achieve an agreement that’s beneficial to both Japan and the US. We won’t compromise Japan’s interests by prioritising a quick deal.”
The prime minister spoke following a gathering with opposition party leaders to discuss US tariffs.
After the closed meeting, Japan Innovation Party co-leader Seiji Maehara told the press that Ishiba said there is a large gap in stances between the US and Japan.
The upcoming summit gathering in Canada is viewed as a potential moment for Japan and the US to reach some kind of an agreement after two months of back and forths.
Failing to get any kind of deal there could worsen Ishiba’s standing ahead of a national election next month as the tariffs threaten to push Japan’s economy into a technical recession.
Ishiba said he can’t say how far the negotiations have progressed, and that he doesn’t have a timeline for when an agreement may come, Maehara said.
Meanwhile more pressure seemed to come from Trump.
The US president said he intended to send letters to trading partners in the next one to two weeks setting unilateral tariff rates, ahead of a July 9 deadline to reimpose higher duties on dozens of economies.
For Japan, an across-the-board tariff is set to increase to 24% from 10% on that day barring a deal. The Asian nation is also trying to earn a reprieve from a 25% tariff on autos and auto parts and a 50% levy on steel and aluminum.
Ishiba’s top trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa is expected to travel to North America later this week for the sixth round of negotiations with his counterparts. - Bloomberg
