Trump urges greater Japanese investment in U.S.

U.S. President Donald Trump urged Japanese business leaders on Saturday to increase their investment in the United States while saying Japan had a substantial edge on trade that negotiators were trying to even out.

Trump arrived in Japan earlier on Saturday for a state visit. He told the group of top business executives there had never been a better time to invest in the United States.

Trade disputes

The disputes between Japan and the U.S. are longstanding. The U.S. trade deficit with Japan was 6.5 trillion yen (58 billion U.S. dollars) in 2018, according to Japan's Finance Ministry. Autos and auto parts take up a big part of that deficit.

After Washington withdrew TPP in 2017, the U.S. currently imposes tariffs of 2.5 percent on passenger cars, 25 percent on trucks, and 2.4 percent on large motorcycles on Japan. But the Trump administration threat to raise tariffs by up to 25 percent on national security grounds.

Trump said on May 17 that he would delay tariffs on auto imports from Japan and the European Union by up to 180 days.

Japan announced on the same day to eliminate restrictions on U.S. beef exports. The move allows all cattle, regardless of age, to enter Japan for the first time since 2003. The U.S. Meat Export Federation estimates that expanded access could increase U.S. beef sales to Japan by seven percent to 10 percent.

(CGTN)