TOKYO: The Japanese government may propose increasing duty-free imports of US rice in negotiations over US tariffs, according to government sources.

The United States has said that it would be difficult for it to revise tariffs on imports of automobiles, which is Japan’s top priority.

Tokyo hopes to break the deadlock by making a bold proposal on rice tariffs, which US President Donald Trump views as problematic.

Concretely, it is said imports will be expanded through “minimum-access rice”, or Japan’s quota for rice that can be imported without a tariff.

The government has set an annual quota of 770,000 tonnes that can arrive tariff free, and imports in excess of this are subject to a duty of ¥341 per kg, in compliance with World Trade Organisation rules.

In the financial year 2023, Japan imported 348,000 tonnes of minimum-access rice, or 45% of the quota, from the United States, making it the biggest beneficiary of Japan’s tariff exemption for rice.

Amid a rice shortage, 1,497 tonsne were imported over the quota from April 2024 to February, about four times the amount in recent years.

Trump has repeatedly criticised Japan over the rice market, citing an inaccurate figure that “Japan imposes a 700% tariff”.

Some in the government hope that expanding rice imports will be an effective response to US dissatisfaction, and that the Japanese public will be quick to understand amid the ongoing shortage of domestically produced rice.

Concerning domestic rice production, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said at a meeting of the Budget Committee of the House of Councillors on Monday: “We have taken various measures to protect Japanese agriculture, but the sector is in decline.

“We must rethink how to handle this.”

However, allowing more rice imports may draw opposition from farmers, who support the Liberal Democratic Party, and a House of Councillors election is set for this summer.

The government plans to carefully coordinate with the ruling parties on the issue.

As for the 25% tariffs that Washington has imposed on automobiles, steel and aluminum, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has expressed reluctance to reconsider the measures at ministerial-level talks on April 16. — The Japan News/ANN

Published Date: April 24, 2025