The U.S. government on Thursday promised to amend a presidential executive order to remove overlapping tariffs on Japanese goods, Tokyo’s trade negotiator said, after talks in Washington to fix what he called a “regrettable” oversight.
In those discussions, Ryosei Akazawa urged U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to ensure that a 15% levy agreed last month on Japanese imports was not stacked on goods, such as beef, that are subject to higher tariffs.
They explained they would amend a July 31 presidential order, which included a no-stacking provision for the European Union but not Japan, and also refund excess duties collected, Akazawa said.
Lutnick and Bessent also said Trump would lower auto tariffs to 15% from 27.5% in a separate executive order, in line with the trade agreement reached by the two countries last month.
“Frankly, I did not expect to be visiting the U.S. again so soon after my last trip,” said Akazawa, who has travelled to Washington nine times since April.
