On Friday, Aug. 8, a Trump administration official said that the U.S. is working on an announcement that would end the stacking of universal tariffs on Japanese goods.
The plans — shared with Bloomberg on condition of anonymity — aim to end the long-running uncertainty over how American President Donald Trump would levy tariffs on a key trading partner after reaching a deal. They also align with public remarks made by Ryosei Akazawa, Tokyo’s chief trade negotiator, following his Thursday, Aug. 7 meeting with counterparts in Washington.
The announcement — to be potentially issued as a joint statement from both nations — would confirm that Japan, like the European Union, will have its 15 percent reciprocal tariff rate including existing most-favored-nation duties.
Akazawa, after meeting with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, said U.S. officials regretted applying the stacking rule to Japan despite a prior verbal agreement. He added that Washington had pledged to refund any excess tariffs already collected.
“We’ve strongly urged our counterparts to promptly implement these measures,” Akazawa told reporters Saturday after returning to Tokyo.
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Akazawa would not say when a decision might be reached, but noted that the U.S.-UK trade pact took 54 days to come into force.
“Keeping such things in mind when it comes to timing, we believe every day matters,” he said.
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Steeper-than-anticipated tariffs
Japan faced steeper-than-anticipated universal tariffs under the wave of new duties rolled out by the Trump administration on Thursday. Though the gap in rates was likely small, the mix-up fueled fresh criticism of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who is already under pressure to resign after a disappointing election performance.
“We have confirmed that when the U.S. side takes measures to revise the executive order on universal tariffs, they will issue another order to reduce tariffs on cars and auto parts,” Akazawa said. “We will continue to urge the U.S. side, through all available means and channels” to make those things happen, he said.
Under the stacking system, Japan’s 15 percent tariff is added on top of existing duties for its goods. Once Japan is granted an exemption, Akazawa explained, the 15 percent rate would only apply to products that previously carried tariffs below that level, while goods that already faced tariffs above 15 percent would see the extra charge removed.
Notably, Japanese vehicle manufacturers are still struggling with tariffs of 27.5 percent. The punishing tariff is the sum of a previous 2.5 percent rate and the new 25 percent levy implemented by the Trump administration.
“With each day that passes, the losses incurred by Japanese companies are mounting,” Akazawa said, adding that some Japanese companies are hemorrhaging upwards of $679,000 an hour, without citing a company.
