Japan’s Akazawa Says Still Working on Date for Next Trade Talks

Japan and the US are still working on setting the timing for the next round of cabinet-level trade talks, Japan’s point person for the negotiations said, as the deadline for a deal to avert another hike in tariffs nears.

“We’re still in the process of setting a date for the next ministerial meeting,” Ryosei Akazawa, Japan’s chief trade negotiator, said Tuesday at a post-cabinet meeting press conference, as he again played down the importance of the July 9 date for tariffs to rise. “We’re not going to put a deadline on the discussions.”

As with other nations, Japan is subject to sectoral duties on autos, steel and aluminum. A 10% duty on all other Japanese goods is set to rise to 24% on July 9, barring a deal. The Yomiuri newspaper reported Tuesday that Akazawa will depart for Washington on Thursday for more talks.

Akazawa has repeatedly said he won’t fixate on the July 9 deadline, and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has suggested that countries engaged in good-faith negotiations may be granted an extension. Akazawa has traveled to Washington six times already in his efforts to win a reprieve for Japan from the duties.

Japan appeared to be under pressure to strike a deal in time for the Group of Seven summit in Canada earlier this month with a flurry of phone calls between President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba ahead of the gathering. But no agreement was announced.

Tokyo will prioritize protecting its national interests in trade talks without rushing into a deal, Ishiba said at the end of the G-7 meetings.

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