TOKYO, Nov. 7 — U.S. President Donald Trump has been calling on Japan to reduce its trade surplus with the United States, blaming his country’s trade deficit on unfair trade deals between the two.
Japan’s Prime minister Shinzo Abe met Trump on Nov. 6 in Tokyo, the first destination of the president’s Asia trip, to discuss primarily North Korea and trade.
Both have agreed to accelerate engagement on trade through the ongoing Japan-U.S. Economic Dialogue between Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso and Vice President Mike Pence, Japanese government officials explained.
But during the meeting, Trump didn’t ask Abe to launch bilateral trade negotiations with the U.S., they said.
Speaking at the Nov. 6 press conference with Abe, the U.S. president said: “We have massive trade deficits with Japan.” For the U.S., the Japanese trade deficit is second only to that with China.
Trump said the U.S. wants to reduce that trade imbalance and boost exports to Japan.
Ahead of the summit, Trump told the Japanese and U.S. business executives that trade with Japan “is not fair and not open,” again singling out Japanese carmakers.
During his five-nation Asia trip, Trump visited South Korea and China, before flying to Vietnam to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit and then on to the Philippines.