U.S.-Japan Auto Talks Move Forward : Trade: Tokyo negotiators agree to discuss renewal of voluntary purchase plans.
Negotiations between the United States and Japan on auto trade took a step forward Wednesday, when Japanese negotiators agreed to discuss a key U.S. demand that until now they had said was not on the table.
Japanese International Trade and Industry Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto told reporters after meeting with U.S. Trade Representative Mickey Kantor that further talks will include discussions on a U.S. demand that Japanese car makers renew voluntary plans to beef up their purchases of U.S.-made parts.
U.S. negotiators declined to discuss the development with reporters, but they were clearly pleased.
Kantor would only say that his talks with Hashimoto had been “interesting and detailed.”
Despite the development, expectations are low for a deal this week on what the United States considers a top trade priority. A senior Japanese negotiator said gaps remain between the two sides.
Yoshihiro Sakamoto, vice minister of Japan’s Ministry of International Trade and Industry, said Japan still believes the voluntary purchase plans “should not be an issue.”
The meeting between Kantor and Hashimoto followed two days of lower-level discussions. Negotiators said those discussions had made some progress around the edges of issues but that they had a long way to go.
Washington wants Tokyo to widen access to Japan’s network of car dealers so U.S. manufacturers can boost sales. Washington also wants Tokyo to make it easier for U.S. parts makers to gain access to Japan’s tightly controlled replacement parts markets.
The biggest sticking point is renewal of the voluntary purchase plans, in which Japanese manufacturers spell out how they plan to boost purchases of U.S.-made parts for their factories.
On Tuesday, Hashimoto had said no deal was possible that included the plans. Manufacturers had agreed to voluntary plans in 1992, but those expired in March.
Kantor began Wednesday’s discussions saying he was prepared to move talks, which have been dragging on for nearly two years, forward. He also said discussions, which were to end Wednesday, will continue through Friday.
Kantor and Hashimoto were due to join the trade ministers of the European Union and Canada at a nearby mountain resort in Whistler on Wednesday evening. The extended talks on auto trade will take place there, U.S. officials said.
The talks are being closely watched by currency traders, who believe that lack of a deal on the long-simmering dispute could push the battered dollar down further against the Japanese yen.
The United States has threatened to impose punitive tariffs on billions of dollars’ worth of Japanese imports if negotiators fail to strike a deal. In Washington, President Clinton’s economic adviser, Laura D’Andrea Tyson, said the United States could pursue other options as well.
