Japanese Official Says Plan Near With U.S. on Imports

Japan and the United States are near agreement on a new project that both hope will double Japanese imports of American goods in three years, a Ministry of International Trade and Industry official said Thursday.

The “Export Now” campaign will probably be announced Saturday in Washington after Trade and Industry Minister Hajime Tamura meets U.S. Commerce Secretary William C. Verity Jr.

Details have to be worked out, but the basic framework will call for both countries to make a list of U.S.-made products that are little known but highly marketable in Japan.

Government-business committees will exchange information, run seminars and send trade missions to Japan, the trade official said.

“American manufacturers have not been thinking so much about exports,” the official said. “But now the exchange rate gives them an advantage. Higher exports will help the U.S. lessen its trade deficit with Japan.”

He said that, despite a surge of sales to Japan due to the strong yen, “doubling exports in three years would be difficult.”

Markets Opening

He said it was ultimately up to private business in both countries to ensure an increase in Japanese imports. “We cannot make any promises,” the official said. “It is a matter for business, not government.”

U.S. exports to Japan in 1987 totaled $31.49 billion against imports of $83.58 billion, according to Japanese government figures.

Speaking in Chicago on Wednesday, Prime Minister Noburo Takeshita said Tokyo would continue to try to cut its trade surplus by boosting imports and opening up markets further.

He said Japan’s current account surplus would drop by some $10 billion in the fiscal year ending next March from $84.5 billion a year earlier. “I will do my utmost” to help correct Japan’s trade surplus, Takeshita said.