(Bloomberg) — Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said he would go to the US as soon as possible to pitch a wide-ranging deal with President Donald Trump over tariffs.
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Speaking in parliament on Monday, Ishiba said he would strongly urge Trump to drop the planned 24% tariff on Japanese imports, first by holding a phone call with the president.
“We must make it clear that our country is not doing anything unfair,” Ishiba said.
Over the weekend, Ishiba said Japan’s approach to resolve the crisis over tariffs could include proposals over liquefied natural gas, cars, agriculture and national security, according to local media.
“When we negotiate with the US we want to present a package. That will take some time, but we will make it a success,” Ishiba said.
Japan is set to be hit with a 24% tariff on its exports to the US from April 9, alongside a 25% tariff on autos that’s already taken effect. Policymakers have said they won’t rule out any options in response, but haven’t given any clear indication that Tokyo would take retaliatory measures against the US.
During a summit with Trump in February, Ishiba promised to buy more LNG from the US and raise Japan’s investments into the US to $1 trillion. Ishiba and other top officials have repeatedly touted Japan’s standing as the biggest investor in the US, including factories built by Japanese automakers that have created jobs for Americans.
Nonetheless, Japan hasn’t gotten any reprieve from Trump’s tariffs. The trade crisis is dealing a political blow to Ishiba, whose popularity remains low ahead of a national election in the summer.
A poll published on Monday by JNN showed a 7.8 percentage point decline in Ishiba’s public approval rating from a month earlier to 30.6%, the lowest figure since he became prime minister last year. The survey also showed that 57% of respondents thought Japan should retaliate against the US over the tariff dispute.
Concerns about the global trade war weighed heavily on Japanese stocks in early trading Monday, after futures trading was suspended earlier as a circuit breaker was triggered due to a glut of sell orders.
–With assistance from Alastair Gale.
(Adds comments from Ishiba in parliament, market moves)
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