April 24, 2025

Japan may raise soybean imports as concession to US

Japan is considering increasing its soybean and rice imports as a concession in trade negotiations with the United States over US President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs, Japan's Yomiuri daily reported on April 19.

With Trump's trade offensive roiling markets and stoking recession fears, Japan is seeking to walk back his "reciprocal" tariffs and other duties imposed on Japan, along with dozens of countries.

In their first round of bilateral talks on April 16, US negotiators brought up automobiles and rice as areas where they said Tokyo puts up market barriers, and they demanded that Japan import more meat, fish products and potatoes, the newspaper said, without citing the sources for its information.

Those trade barriers are cited in an annual report by the Office of the US Trade Representative.

Trump has lambasted Japan for what he said was a 700% tariff on rice - a figure Japan said is based on outdated international rice prices.

Even before Trump's tariffs, Japan had been increasing its imports of staple rice in the past year as domestic prices have skyrocketed due to a supply shortage.

- Reuters