US, Japan launch talks to resolve steel, aluminum tariffs: official

[WASHINGTON] The United States said on Friday it had opened talks with Japan aimed at reducing US tariffs on steel and aluminum imports imposed under former president Donald Trump, after Washington reached a deal on the same issue with the European Union.

Citing distortions caused by global overproduction, "the United States and Japan will seek to resolve bilateral concerns in this area," US Trade Representative Katherine Tai and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said in a statement.

"The United States and Japan have a historic alliance, built on mutual trust and respect," Tai and Raimondo said, before taking aim at Beijing.

"These consultations present an opportunity to promote high standards, address shared concerns, including climate change, and hold countries like China that support trade-distorting non-market policies and practices to account."

Raimondo is due in Tokyo next week for talks with Japanese officials. Her first official Asian trip will also take her to Singapore and Malaysia.

In June 2018, Trump imposed tariffs of 25 per cent on steel and 10 per cent on aluminum from several economies, including the European Union and Japan. The Republican said he was acting on national security grounds, a claim rejected by critics.

Last week, the United States and the EU announced they would lift those tariffs in what President Joe Biden called a "new era in transatlantic cooperation." The conflict had poisoned trade links between Washington and Brussels.

AFP