Shigeru Ishiba, the Prime Minister of Japan, displayed a photo album received as a gift from President Donald Trump during a joint press conference after a meeting at the White House on February 7 (local time).
Prime Minister Ishiba held a 25-minute phone conversation with President Trump on the 7th (local time) regarding tariff issues. The U.S. and Japan have agreed to start high-level negotiations for mutual tariff adjustments.
After the call, Prime Minister Ishiba stated, “Japan has been the largest investor in the U.S. for five consecutive years and warned that tariff policies could harm the investment capabilities of Japanese companies.” He also mentioned, “If it is appropriate to meet with President Trump to directly discuss this issue, I will not hesitate.”
Scott Besant, appointed as the U.S. representative for the Japan-U.S. trade negotiations, predicted that Japan would become a “priority negotiation target” in exchange for its swift engagement in the discussions.
Currently, Japan has dispatched officials at the vice-ministerial level to the U.S., including Takeshi Akahori from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Takehiko Matsuo from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. NHK reported that they are consulting with the U.S. side to follow up on the phone conversation between the leaders of Japan and the U.S. and prepare for high-level discussions.
Japan is requesting that it be exempted not only from the mutual tariffs that will be enacted on the 9th but also from tariffs imposed on steel, aluminum, and automobiles. The Nihon Keizai Shimbun noted that the U.S. has raised issues regarding agricultural tariffs but has not clarified conditions for formal negotiations.
Meanwhile, President Trump instructed the U.S. National Security Council to review Nippon Steel’s proposal to acquire US Steel. The market interpreted this as the Trump administration viewing Nippon Steel’s acquisition of US Steel positively. US Steel’s stock price rose by more than 16% in the New York market on that day.