U.S., Japan: Limited Trade Deal Includes Agricultural, Industrial Tariff Reductions

[Swordsmyth]

U.S. President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe signed a joint statement on Sept. 25 to "confirm and welcome" the finalization of a limited trade agreement covering some agricultural and industrial tariffs. Once implemented, Japan will immediately reduce tariffs on $2.9 billion in U.S. products, including pork and beef; eliminate them on a further $1.3 billion in vegetables, fruits and grains; and provide staged rollbacks on another $3 billion in agricultural products, including ethanol and poultry. Japan will instate tariff-free quotas on U.S. products such as wheat while maintaining safeguards to prevent surges of pork and beef imports. In exchange, $40 million worth of Japanese agricultural exports will gain tariff-free access to the U.S. market, while access for Japanese beef will expand as well. The United States will also lower or eliminate barriers for a limited set of Japanese industrial exports, including certain machine tools. Last, the countries reached a side agreement on digital trade that will provide more robust commitments on $40 billion worth of trade.

More at: https://worldview.stratfor.com/situation-report/us-japan-limited-trade-deal-includes-agricultural-industrial-tariff-reductions