Japan PM seeks 'fairness' in currency talks with Trump administration

• PM Ishiba hints on possibility of buying more US energy.
• FinMin to hold talks on currency policy with US Treasury official.
• Kato rules out using US Treasury holdings as bargaining tool.
  

TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has said that his country will stress "fairness" in any discussions with US President Donald Trump's administration on exchange rates as bilateral trade talks grab global attention amid Washington's tariff offensive.

Ishiba, in a talk show on public broadcaster NHK, indicated Tokyo could buy more US energy and suggested flexibility on US accusations of non-tariff barriers to the Japanese automobile market.

Trump — who unexpectedly joined the first round of US-Japan talks on Wednesday and touted "big progress" — has indicated he wants the negotiations to include his accusations that Tokyo intentionally weakens its currency to give its exporters an unfair advantage.

Ishiba said specific discussions on currency policy will be made between Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

"We'll have to deal with this issue from the standpoint of fairness," Ishiba said, when asked how Japan would respond if the US asked for cooperation in boosting the yen. He did not elaborate.

Japan, which denies manipulating the yen, has over the years typically fought to keep a strong yen from hurting its export-reliant economy, but it last intervened in the foreign exchange market last year to boost its currency.

Kato plans to visit Washington this week for a meeting of the Group of 20 finance chiefs on the sidelines of the spring meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He is widely expected to meet Bessent for bilateral trade talks.

US energy imports

Some analysts say Japan could use its huge US Treasury holdings — the largest in the world at over $1 trillion — as trade leverage, but Kato this month ruled out using them as a bargaining tool.

"This is something that's based on trust between the two sides, global economic stability, as well the two countries' economic stability," Ishiba said when asked whether Japan would refer to its US debt holdings during the talks.

Trump has hit Japan with 24% tariffs on its exports to the US although, like most of Trump's levies, they have been paused until early July. A 10% universal rate remains in place, as does a 25% duty on cars, a mainstay of Japan's export-reliant economy.

Nikkei Asia reported on Sunday that Japan is considering relaxing auto safety rules for imports as part of its tariff negotiations with the US Washington has long complained that Japanese safety rules are a non-tariff barrier, while Japan and many experts say Detroit automakers do not make cars suited to Japan's roads and drivers.

Asked about such accusations, Ishiba said there were differences in US and Japanese traffic and safety rules that must be taken into account. "But we also need to ensure we're not told our (safety) rules are unfair."

He signalled a readiness to pledge bigger Japanese investment in the US, particularly in the area of energy.

"As for liquefied natural gas, Australia is the biggest exporter to Japan. I believe the US is in fourth place. It's possible we could have this increase. The question is whether the US can deliver [energy] stably," he said.