[UN 25 Reuters]-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and US President Trump agreed to sign a trade agreement at a meeting held in New York on the 25th and signed the agreement. President Trump said the Japanese market of about $ 7 billion will be opened.
Mr. Trump explained at the signing ceremony with Prime Minister Abe during the United Nations General Assembly that he would cover the $ 40 billion digital trade in the first trade agreement. He said both Japan and the United States will continue the consultation.
The two leaders did not mention tariffs on Japanese cars that the US side is considering introducing. The Japanese side was asking the US side to make a commitment not to trigger tariffs on Japanese cars for security reasons under Article 232 of the US Trade Expansion Act.
US Trade Representative (USTR) points out the signed agreement as "early achievement". According to Mr. Trump, Japan will open the market for $ 7 billion worth of US agricultural products, and tariffs on US beef, pork, wheat, cheese, corn and wine will be greatly reduced or eliminated. According to the USTR, about 90% of US agricultural products exported to Japan are tax-exempt or preferential.
Meanwhile, the US will eliminate or reduce tariffs on a wide range of industrial equipment such as machine tools, steam turbines and bicycles, as well as cut flowers and soy sauce from Japan.
In the digital field, both countries will ban taxation of software downloads.
