Japan’s Akazawa plans U.S. trip to push for auto tariff cut

Ryosei Akazawa, the head of Japan’s trade negotiating team, said he was leading his cavalry back to Washington starting today, August 5, to press for swift action on the auto tariff cut. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi also called for quicker issuance of Trump’s executive order to reduce auto tariffs from 27.5% to 15%.   

The Economic Revitalization Minister said his team “will push” the U.S. to ensure the executive order is prioritized and “the agreed tariff on automobiles and automotive components” is effected “as soon as possible.” Akazawa also mentioned that Japan was trying to avoid the “stacking” problem, where multiple tariffs could impact its goods.

Last week, Prime Minister Ishiba said Japan exported nearly 4.318K products to the U.S. He added that his country was preparing necessary measures to cushion the effects of the high auto tariffs. Japan initially wanted those tariffs removed, but the U.S. stood its ground, leading Japan to agree to lower taxes.

However, Akazawa was quoted last week saying it could take time for the 15% auto tariff rate to be effected. He hopes his team will succeed and seal the deal, similar to the auto tariff agreement recently entered into by the U.S. and Britain. 

Hayashi says the executive order will reduce uncertainty

The Chief Cabinet Secretary recently said President Trump’s executive order to cut tariffs on Japanese automobile exports to the U.S. would reduce the uncertainty over “U.S. trade policy.” It would also mitigate the “downside risks” likely to affect Japan’s economy. If successful, the revised tariffs will be implemented from August 7. They were initially expected to take effect on August 1.

Hayashi disclosed that Japan would continue to call on the U.S. to implement the revised bilateral agreement as soon as possible. He added that his country “will closely monitor” the progress on these talks on cars and auto parts. According to Hayashi and other Japanese officials, higher tariffs on Japanese cars dealt a massive blow to carmaking companies like Honda Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. The U.S. market is critical for both companies’ bottom lines. 

“We will continue to call for the United States to take measures to implement the bilateral agreement swiftly, including reductions in tariffs on cars and auto parts.” – Yoshimasa Hayashi, Chief Cabinet Secretary of Japan

Akazawa also emphasized that Japanese exports to the U.S. with a more than 15% levy should be exempted from the additional 15%. However, the head of the Democratic Party for the People, Yuichiro Tamaki, worried that the revised deal would not be enough to minimize the negative impact of tariffs on Japan’s economy. 

Noda believes the new deal should be formalized

The head of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Yoshihiko Noda, preferred the U.S.-Japan trade deal to be formalized in writing. He added that the signing should be a public event, like a bilateral summit.

The former Prime Minister also stressed the need for the Japanese government to “draw up” an economic stimulus package to address any “tariff fallout.”  However, he pointed out that Prime Minister Ishiba had not mentioned a supplementary budget for the 2025/26 fiscal year.

Ishiba recently urged officials who attended a government task force meeting to “take all possible steps” to ease the impact of Trump’s tariffs. He claimed that the country’s economists had predicted things would be slow in the “export-driven economy.” 

However, just a day after the U.S.-Japan deal, the U.S. announced that Japan would buy $8 billion worth of U.S. farm and food products, such as bioethanol, fertilizers, corn, and soybeans. It also said Japan would buy more U.S.-made defense equipment worth billions of dollars annually. The Asian U.S. ally is also expected to buy about 100 Boeing planes.