Japan warns against trade deal backtracking after tariff actions

Japanese Trade Minister Ryosei Akazawa warned against any tariff moves that could leave Japan worse off than under a Japan-US trade deal agreed to last year, during a phone call with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick as a new round of US tariffs is set to take effect.

Akazawa and Lutnick agreed that Japan and the US would work closely to ensure the swift and smooth implementation of projects that are part of a $550 billion investment mechanism, during a phone call Monday evening. The two spoke for about 40 minutes, according to a statement from Japan’s trade ministry.

“Minister Akazawa also conveyed that, as the U.S. government rolls out new tariff measures, Japan’s position should not be worse off than its position under last year’s Japan–US agreement,” the statement read, referring to a deal under which Japan agreed to create the $550 billion investment vehicle as the US lowered tariffs on auto imports from Japan to 15% from 27.5%.

The statement shows that confusion pertaining to US trade policies persists almost a year after Donald Trump first started threatening various duty levels shortly after taking office in January 2025. After the Supreme Court struck down Trump’s so-called reciprocal tariffs as illegal, the administration said a 10% levy would be imposed beginning Tuesday morning, according to a White House fact sheet. Trump subsequently threatened to increase the rate to 15%.

On the surface, the latest rumblings from the White House aren’t likely to result in more onerous conditions for Japan, as its products were already subject to a 15% US import tariff.

“We will continue to work on implementing the trade deal steadily and surely, and we will continue to seek the US to do so as well,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said in a regular press briefing held Tuesday. He added that the government will keep a close eye on further developments and any impact on the existing trade deal.

The initial batch of investment projects, announced just last week by Trump, includes outlays for a data infrastructure project, a deep sea oil terminal, and a facility to manufacture synthetic diamonds used for semiconductors. All of the projects announced so far are based in the US.

“Both sides reaffirmed that Japan and the US would continue to work on implementing the agreed trade deal swiftly and in good faith,” the statement said.

Itsunori Onodera, a former defense minister who currently serves as chairperson of the ruling party’s tax research group, said Sunday during a live broadcast on Fuji TV that the tariff situation in the US was “a real mess.”

He dismissed the possibility of Japan seeking a renegotiation of the trade deal, however. He pointed out that the crux of trade negotiations last year was lowering tariffs on autos — Japan’s largest source of exports and a key provider of jobs and investment.

“For Japan, the top priority was autos at the time, but those auto tariffs are not covered by this Supreme Court decision. It wouldn’t be good if we started seeing an impact there because we try to renegotiate the deal,” he said.

He added that any renegotiation would require “a thorough and careful discussion.”

© 2026 Bloomberg

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