US raps Japan over rice tariff
The United States on Tuesday criticized Japan over its tariff on rice imports. "Look at Japan, tariffing rice, 700 %," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a press briefing.
"President Donald Trump believes in reciprocity," she said, suggesting that Japanese rice may be subject to so-called reciprocal tariffs that the administration plans to impose next month.
"All he's asking for at the end of the day are fair and balanced trade practices," Leavitt said of Trump.
In February, Trump ordered officials to devise plans for reciprocal tariffs, aiming to match the level of tariffs imposed by trading partners.
Japan imposes a tariff of 341 yen per kilogram of imported rice that exceeds a duty-free quota, a measure designed to protect domestic farmers.
The country refused to lower the tariff during the first Trump administration.
The US International Trade Commission last week said that US rice production and exports are projected to increase if Japan expands its duty-free import quota. It also criticized Japan's rice import policy for lacking transparency.
[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
Photo by Reuters
