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Investing.com -- The United States has rejected Japan’s request for a full exemption from a 10 percent "reciprocal" tariff and a country-specific tariff, according to a report from Kyodo News, citing sources familiar with the matter. In recent negotiations, U.S. officials, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, communicated to Japan’s chief negotiator Ryosei Akazawa that the Trump administration is only willing to consider a reduction in the 14 percent country-specific tariff, which has been suspended until early July.
In the second round of talks, the U.S. team emphasized that they would only contemplate extending the 90-day suspension or reducing the 14 percent tariff based on the progress of the negotiations. Japan has been advocating for the complete removal of "reciprocal" tariffs, including an additional 25 percent levy on cars and a 25 percent duty on steel and aluminum, highlighting its contributions to the U.S. economy through investment and job creation.
However, the U.S. has stated it will not negotiate the global 10 percent baseline levy or tariffs on cars and steel products. Japan is one of the first countries with which the U.S. has started negotiations on its higher import tariffs.
The U.S. perceives that Japan has more opportunities to open its auto and agricultural sectors. In the first round of discussions in mid-April, the U.S. expressed dissatisfaction with the number of U.S.-made cars imported into Japan and urged the country to open its market to more U.S.-grown crops.