4th Round of Japan-U.S. Tariff Talks Set for Around May 30

The Yomiuri Shimbun

16:47 JST, May 23, 2025

The fourth round of Japan-U.S. tariff negotiations will take place around May 30, as the two governments have agreed to hold a summit meeting between Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and U.S. President Donald Trump in mid-June to find breakthrough, according to several Japanese government sources.

Ryosei Akazawa, the economic revitalization minister, will travel to the United States once again for the envisaged session to hold direct talks with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, after Akazawa returns to Japan following the third round of negotiations slated for Friday, the sources said.

Bessent, who is leading the U.S. negotiating team, was to be absent at Friday’s ministerial-level talks, and instead, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick were to attend.

If negotiations progress in these talks, Tokyo and Washington will study the possibility of reaching some kind of tariff-related agreement at the planned Ishiba-Trump talks to be held on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit meeting in Canada.

However, the United States is largely at odds with Japan, which seeks the abolition of a series of U.S. tariff measures, including an additional portion of levies on automobiles. There are no signs of compromise in the working-level negotiations taking place this week.

“We should not let the ongoing negotiations damage Japan’s national interests just because we prioritize reaching an early agreement,” Akazawa has said of his stance.

Japan is seen to be carefully gauging the U.S. response while presenting such options as reviewing a nontariff barrier.

If the two sides fail to find any common ground by mid-June, the leaders will likely review the progress of negotiations and confirm their basic understanding at the summit meeting, before continuing ministerial-level talks.