Washington - Saba:
US President Donald Trump announced the conclusion of what he described as the "largest trade deal ever signed" with Japan, under which Tokyo will invest approximately $550 billion in the United States and pay a 15% tariff.
Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform: "We just made a massive deal with Japan, perhaps the largest ever. Japan, under my direction, will invest $550 billion in the United States, which will keep 90% of the profits. This deal will create hundreds of thousands of jobs — like never before."
He added: "Most importantly, Japan will open its market to trade, including cars and trucks, rice, and some other agricultural products. It will also pay a reciprocal 15% tariff to the United States. This is a very exciting time for the United States, especially as our excellent relationship with Japan continues."
For his part, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said his government needed to study the details of the trade agreement announced by US President Donald Trump before making any comment.
Ishiba told reporters in Tokyo following Trump's announcement from Washington: "Regarding the results of the negotiations, I cannot discuss them until we thoroughly study the details of the negotiations and the agreement."
Earlier on Tuesday, Trump announced that trade agreements had been concluded with the Philippines and Indonesia. Under these agreements, US tariffs on goods imported from the two countries will be reduced to 19%, which will be paid by US companies, while no tariffs will be imposed on US goods exported to those countries.
On April 9, Trump announced a 90-day suspension of planned tariffs on more than 75 countries to allow for negotiations with these countries regarding their trade imbalances with the United States. China was not among these countries.
Trump had previously confirmed that several countries were demanding a reduction in tariffs, but on May 31, he announced that the United States would double tariffs on steel imports from 25 percent to 50 percent.
For his part, US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant confirmed to CNN that the United States would send letters to its trading partners warning them that if a trade agreement is not reached by August 1, the tariffs that were temporarily suspended would be reimposed.
| more of (International) |