U.S., Japan reach deal on steel tariffs, cancel Trump-era tariffs

On February 7, local time, according to local US media citing sources, the United States and Japan have reached an agreement to cancel the tariff policy imposed by the United States on Japanese steel products during the administration of former US President Trump.

The news said that the United States will suspend the 25% tariff increase within a certain amount of Japanese steel imports, but the part that exceeds this limit will still be subject to additional tariffs. But the agreement does not include the aluminum part. A 10% tariff will still be imposed on Japanese aluminum products exported to the United States. At the same time, there will be no Japanese involvement in negotiations between the United States and Europe to curb the high-carbon steel industry.

In 2018, Trump invoked the so-called “Section 232” to impose high steel and aluminum tariffs on many countries on the grounds that imported steel and aluminum products “threaten the national security of the United States“, setting off a new round of trade disputes. The European Union then imposed retaliatory tariffs on some U.S. products. After repeated negotiations, the EU and the US reached an agreement at the end of October 2021. From 2022, the US will exempt EU steel and aluminum products within the specified quota from the tariffs imposed under “Article 232”, while the EU has suspended the implementation of countermeasures. A three-year dispute over steel and aluminum tariffs has eased.