Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba restated on Sunday his commitment to pursuing the removal of all tariffs in trade talks with the United States. Ishiba mentioned on a Fuji Television morning programme that discussions have been progressing and that Tokyo's relationship with US President Donald Trump is surprisingly positive. Ishiba commented on the trade agreement between Washington and London, announced on Thursday, which reduces duties on British car exports but maintains a 10 per cent baseline tariff. He suggested that while this deal serves as a model, the goal should be to achieve tariffs of zero per cent. Saying that high auto import levies would make cars more expensive for US consumers, Ishiba added, "for the sake of the American economy as well, shouldn't those tariffs be lowered?" On Friday, Trump announced that the US will keep a minimum 10 per cent tariff on imports in place even after trade agreements are made, with the possibility of exceptions for countries that provide substantial trade concessions. Attribution: Reuters Subediting: M. S. Salama
