Japanese official: tariffs show Donald Trump does not understand free trade

Hiroshige Seko, the minister of economy, trade and industry, warns that Tokyo might take action if the US fulfils threats to levy a 25 per cent tariff on Japanese auto imports

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Japan’s Trade Minister Hiroshige Seko. Photo: AP

Published: 9:15am, 24 Aug 2018Updated: 3:31pm, 31 Aug 2018

US President Donald Trump’s tariff policies reflect a serious misunderstanding of the importance of free trade and Japanese companies’ contributions to the US economy, Japan’s trade minister said.

Hiroshige Seko, the minister of economy, trade and industry, warned that Tokyo might take action if the US fulfils threats to levy a 25 per cent tariff on Japanese auto imports. He gave no details but did not rule out retaliatory tariffs.

“Japanese carmakers are a major contributor to the American economy,” Seko said at his ministry office in Tokyo. “If the Japanese auto industry is weakened, it will not be able to invest in the US.”

Seko also expressed worries about the escalating trade war between the US and China, and said such moves threatened the entire global economy. Both sides imposed additional tariffs on billions of dollars of each other’s automobiles, factory machinery and other goods on Thursday.

An employee of Sakae Casting, an aluminium company, in a shop in Hachioji, Japan. Photo: AP

“This works as absolutely no plus for the world economy, and Japanese companies are shipping parts to China to finish them as products there that are exported to the US, and the effects are already being felt,” he said. “Ultimately, it will hurt the US and Chinese economies.”