On Wednesday, the Chief Trade Negotiator from Japan arrived in Washington to begin the first round of trade talks with the USA since April 2.

According to Global Times report, Japanese Prime Minister Shiroyama said on Monday that in the upcoming tariff negotiations with the USA, Japan "does not intend to make major concessions and will not rush to reach an agreement."

It is reported that Japan's Minister for Economic Revitalization, Ryosei Akazawa, will embark on a two-day trip to the USA to hold talks with U.S. Treasury Secretary Mnuchin and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

Media analysis suggests that Japan, as the first 'sample' on the Global stage to initiate negotiations, will outline the core demands of the USA while providing important clues for the world to understand the true motives behind Trump's trade conflict.

Notably, Trump indicated he would participate in the tariff negotiations with Japan, stating:

"Japan is coming to negotiate tariffs today; military support costs and trade fairness are part of the negotiations. I will attend the meeting with the Treasury Secretary and the Secretary of Commerce. I hope to find a mutually beneficial solution for Japan and the USA!"

After Trump's statement, as of the time of this report, the USD/Japan exchange rate showed little short-term fluctuations.

The world's first "sample".

On April 2 local time,According to CCTV News,the White House stated that Trump would impose a 10% "benchmark tariff" on all countries. However, onApril 9 local time,the White House announced a 90-day suspension of implementation, but there remains a risk of triggering a comprehensive Global trade conflict.

As one of the top ten countries with the largest trade surplus, Japan occupies an important position in US product imports, and it has also been the largest foreign investor in the USA over the past five years, making Japan a "touchstone" for the Trump administration's tough foreign policy.

According to the media, Takeshi Niinami, the chairman of the Japan Business Federation, stated that this negotiation will serve as a "showcase" for countries, markets, and companies to see how the Trump administration will negotiate. The media quoted a person familiar with the negotiation preparations as saying:

"All the uncertainties, weaponization of tariffs, and trade conflict rhetoric over the past few weeks have yet to reveal what Trump truly intends to achieve. Japan may not like this position, but its significant contribution may be standing at the forefront before the USA's true intentions become clear."

Auto tariffs are the focus of the negotiation.

Both the USA and Japan have their own ideas.

According to the media, on the USA side, the USA has clearly stated several priorities for the negotiations, including discussing ways for Japan to increase imports of American liquefied natural gas, enhancing opportunities for American agricultural products (such as rice and Chicago SRW Wheat) to enter the Japanese market, and addressing the differences in automotive safety standards, which Washington believes make it difficult for American cars to sell in Japan.

Takeshi Niinami, chairman of the Japan Business Federation, stated that the USA has appointed Bessent as the chief negotiator, indicating that Washington hopes to urge Japan to address the yen depreciation issue and stabilize the US Treasury market, where Japan holds a significant position with approximately 1.1 trillion US dollars in Forex reserves.

According to a previous article from Wall Street Insight, Nomura Securities pointed out that despite the Japanese government proactively proposing large-scale investments and Energy purchases in the USA, the USA may still raise additional demands, including setting a trade surplus target, promoting yen appreciation, extending the holding of US Treasury bonds, and increasing government spending, which may present a series of conditions difficult for Japan to accept.

Japan faces a complex situation in this negotiation. Although Trump has suspended some tariffs, Japan still faces a 25% auto tariff and a 10% basic tax rate, which is detrimental.Japan's exports are under great pressure.Several experts pointed out that Japan's automobile exports have an important position in the USA market, and how to reach a favorable agreement with the USA will be Japan's top priority in negotiations.

In response, Matt Goodman, an expert on Japan-USA economic relations at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), stated:

"Japan may focus on trying to suspend automobile tariffs, but automobile tariffs may be the hardest issue for Trump to make concessions on."

Editor/lambor