US President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced a “massive” trade deal with Japan, including a tariff rate of 15 percent, as a deadline looms for other major US trade partners to strike agreements before the end of this month.
Trump also agreed to reduce threatened tariffs on the Philippines, but only by 1 percentage point, after what he termed a successful meeting with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
In an attempt to slash his country’s colossal trade deficit, Trump has vowed to hit dozens of countries with punitive “reciprocal” tariffs if they do not hammer out a pact with Washington by Friday next week.
Photo: Reuters
The Japan agreement, along with another pact with the Philippines, means Trump has now secured five agreements.
The others were with the UK, Vietnam and Indonesia, which the White House on Tuesday said would ease critical mineral export restrictions.
“We just completed a massive Deal with Japan, perhaps the largest Deal ever made,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Photo: AFP
He said that under the deal, “Japan will invest, at my direction, US$550 Billion Dollars into the United States, which will receive 90 percent of the Profits.”
He did not provide further details on the plan, but said it “will create Hundreds of Thousands of Jobs.”
Japanese exports to the US were already subject to a 10 percent tariff, which would have risen to 25 percent on Aug. 1 without a deal.
Duties of 25 percent on Japanese vehicles — an industry accounting for 8 percent of Japanese jobs — were also already in place, plus 50 percent on steel and aluminum.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba yesterday said that the autos levy had been cut to 15 percent, sending Japanese automaker stocks soaring.
The Nikkei 225 rose 3.5 percent.
“We are the first [country] in the world to reduce tariffs on automobiles and auto parts, with no limits on volume,” Ishiba told reporters.
“By protecting what needs to be protected, we continued the negotiations with an aim to reach an agreement that meets the national interest of both Japan and the United States,” he added.
However, Japanese Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy Ryosei Akazawa, who secured the deal in Washington, said that the 50 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum would remain.
Akazawa also said increased defense spending by Japan was not part of the agreement.
Trump also said that levies on the Philippines would be cut by 1 percentage point to 19 percent after hosting Marcos.
Welcoming Marcos to the White House, Trump called him a “very tough negotiator” and said: “We’re very close to finishing a trade deal — a big trade deal, actually.”
“It was a beautiful visit, and we concluded our Trade Deal, whereby The Philippines is going OPEN MARKET with the United States, and ZERO Tariffs,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The 19 percent rate is still above the 17 percent threatened by Trump in April.
Marcos’ press secretary Claire Castro told a news conference in Manila yesterday that the Philippine president had confirmed Trump’s zero tariffs statement, but only for “certain markets.”
Castro also downplayed the potential effects of a tariff regime, saying that just 16 percent of the country’s exports go to the US, with about two-thirds being electronic components not subject to the levies.
“To put it plainly, it has an impact on the country, but not that much,” she told reporters.
MISINFORMATION: The generated content tends to adopt China’s official stance, such as ‘Taiwan is currently governed by the Chinese central government,’ the NSB said Five China-developed artificial intelligence (AI) language models exhibit cybersecurity risks and content biases, an inspection conducted by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The five AI tools are: DeepSeek, Doubao (豆包), Yiyan (文心一言), Tongyi (通義千問) and Yuanbao (騰訊元寶), the bureau said, advising people to remain vigilant to protect personal data privacy and corporate business secrets. The NSB said it, in accordance with the National Intelligence Services Act (國家情報工作法), has reviewed international cybersecurity reports and intelligence, and coordinated with the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau and the National Police Agency’s Criminal Investigation Bureau to conduct an inspection of China-made AI language
BOOST IN CONFIDENCE: The sale sends a clear message of support for Taiwan and dispels rumors that US President Donald Trump ‘sold out’ the nation, an expert said The US government on Thursday announced a possible sale to Taiwan of fighter jet parts, which was estimated to cost about US$330 million, in a move that an expert said “sends a clear message of support for Taiwan” amid fears that Washington might be wavering in its attitude toward Taipei. It was the first announcement of an arms sale to Taiwan since US President Donald Trump returned to the White House earlier this year. The proposed package includes non-standard components, spare and repair parts, consumables and accessories, as well repair and return support for the F-16, C-130 and Indigenous Defense Fighter aircraft,
CHECKING BOUNDARIES: China wants to disrupt solidarity among democracies and test their red lines, but it is instead pushing nations to become more united, an expert said The US Department of State on Friday expressed deep concern over a Chinese public security agency’s investigation into Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋) for “secession.” “China’s actions threaten free speech and erode norms that have underpinned the cross-strait ‘status quo’ for decades,” a US Department of State spokesperson said. The Chongqing Municipal Public Security Bureau late last month listed Shen as “wanted” and launched an investigation into alleged “secession-related” criminal activities, including his founding of the Kuma Academy, a civil defense organization that prepares people for an invasion by China. The spokesperson said that the US was “deeply concerned” about the bureau investigating Shen
‘TROUBLEMAKER’: Most countries believe that it is China — rather than Taiwan — that is undermining regional peace and stability with its coercive tactics, the president said China should restrain itself and refrain from being a troublemaker that sabotages peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday. Lai made the remarks after China Coast Guard vessels sailed into disputed waters off the Senkaku Islands — known as the Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台) in Taiwan — following a remark Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made regarding Taiwan. Takaichi during a parliamentary session on Nov. 7 said that a “Taiwan contingency” involving a Chinese naval blockade could qualify as a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan, and trigger Tokyo’s deployment of its military for defense. Asked about the escalating tensions
RSS