TEHRAN, August 27- US President Donald Trump on Monday said the United States would not imminently impose new tariffs on autos imported from Japan as the largest and third-largest economies continue negotiations to firm up a preliminary trade agreement.
TEHRAN,Young Journalists Club(YJC) _At a press conference during a global summit in Biarritz, France, Trump was asked if he was still considering the levies, which he can institute under US trade law if his administration finds the imports threaten national security.
"Not at this moment, no, not at this moment," Trump said. "It's something I could do at a later date if I wanted to but we're not looking at that."
Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced an agreement on the core principles of a limited trade deal on Sunday, with Tokyo making concessions on agriculture and Washington maintaining its current auto tariffs of 2.5% on passenger vehicles and 25% on pickup trucks instead of raising them as Trump has threatened to do.
Details of what was agreed have not been released. US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said at the G7 summit that the deal would cut agricultural tariffs across the board and had the potential to boost annual US agricultural exports to Japan by up to $7 billion from the current level of $14 billion, aiding US producers of beef, pork, wheat, dairy products, wine and ethanol.
Lighthizer said it would also provide high standards for digital trade and include industrial goods.
A US business official briefed on the deal said Lighthizer's office confirmed that the "first stage" agreement would reduce tariffs on select industrial goods from Japan but would not reduce US tariffs on autos or auto parts from Japan, nor address non-tariff barriers such as currency issues.
The trade group representing Detroit automakers Ford General Motors and Fiat Chrysler said the announcement was encouraging, but added that any deal needed to address the $56 billion US automotive trade deficit with Japan, which makes up most of the total gap of $68 billion.
"Any potential trade agreement with Japan should lead to truly reciprocal market access for US automakers," American Automotive Policy Council president Matt Blunt said in a statement. "It must address long-standing non-tariff barriers in Japan, and include strong and enforceable provisions that prevent Japan from manipulating its currency to gain an unfair and unearned advantage for its auto exports.
source:presstv
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