By Josh Boak and Mari Yamaguchi | Related Press
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is bragging that Japan has given him, as a part of a brand new commerce framework, $550 billion to spend money on the USA. It’s an astonishing determine, however nonetheless topic to negotiation and maybe not the certain factor he’s portraying.
“Japan is putting up $550 billion in order to lower their tariffs a little bit,” Trump stated Thursday. “They put up, as you could call it, seed money. Let’s call it seed money.”
He stated 90% of any earnings from the cash invested would go to the U.S. even when Japan had put up the funds. “It’s not a loan or anything, it’s a signing bonus,” the Republican president stated, on the commerce framework that lowered his threatened tariff from 25% to fifteen%, together with on autos.
A White Home official stated the phrases are being negotiated and nothing has been formalized in writing. The official, who insisted on anonymity to element the phrases of the talks, recommended the objective was for the $550 billion fund to make investments at Trump’s path.
The sum is important: It could signify greater than 10% of Japan’s whole gross home product. The Japan Exterior Commerce Group estimates that direct funding into the U.S. financial system topped $780 billion in 2023. It’s unclear the diploma to which the $550 billion might signify new funding or circulation into current funding plans.
What the commerce framework introduced Tuesday has achieved is a serious speaking level for the Trump administration.
The president has claimed to have introduced trillions of {dollars} in new funding into the U.S., although the impression of these commitments have but to look within the financial information for jobs, building spending or manufacturing output. The framework additionally enabled Trump to say different nations are agreeing to have their items taxed, even when among the price of these taxes are finally handed alongside to U.S. customers.
On the $550 billion, Japan’s Cupboard Workplace stated it includes the credit score facility of state-affiliated monetary establishments, resembling Japan Financial institution for Worldwide Cooperation. Additional particulars can be determined primarily based on the progress of the funding offers.
Japanese commerce negotiator Ryosei Akazawa, upon returning to Japan, didn’t talk about the phrases of the $550 billion funding. Akazawa stated he believes a written joint assertion is important, no less than on working ranges, to keep away from variations. He isn’t interested by a legally binding commerce pact.
The U.S. apparently launched its model of the deal whereas Japanese officers had been on their return flight residence.
“If we find differences of understanding, we may have to point them out and say ‘that’s not what we discussed,’” Akazawa stated.
The U.S. administration stated the fund can be invested in essential minerals, prescribed drugs, laptop chips and shipbuilding, amongst different industries. It has stated Japan can even purchase 100 airplanes from Boeing and rice from U.S. farmers as a part of the framework, which Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated can be evaluated each three months.
Akazawa denied that Bessent’s quarterly evaluate was a part of the negotiations.
“In my past eight trips to the United States during which I held talks with the president and the ministers,” Akazawa stated. “I have no recollection of discussing how we ensure the implementation of the latest agreement between Japan and the United States.”
He stated it could trigger main disruptions to the financial system and administrative processes if the charges first rise to 25% as scheduled on Aug. 1 after which drop to fifteen%. “We definitely want to avoid that and I believe that is the understanding shared by the U.S. side,” he stated.
On shopping for U.S. rice, Japanese officers have stated they don’t have any plans to lift the present 770,000-ton “minimum access” cap to import extra from America. Agricultural Minister Shinjiro Koizumi stated Japan will determine whether or not to extend U.S. rice imports and that Japan is just not dedicated to a set quota.
Trump’s commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, has recommended that the Japanese settlement is placing stress on different nations resembling South Korea to strike offers with the U.S. Trump, who’s touring in Scotland, plans to fulfill on Sundayv with European Fee President Ursula von der Leyen to debate commerce.
“Whatever Donald Trump wants to build, the Japanese will finance it for him,” Lutnick stated Thursday on CNBC. “Pretty amazing.”
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Yamaguchi reported from Tokyo.
Initially Revealed: July 26, 2025 at 9:34 AM PDT
