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Shares have surged in the automobile industry after the U.S. agreed a deal to lower tariffs this week with Japan, triggering a sharp rally in Japanese equity markets. It's after President Donald Trump and Japan's lead negotiator Ryosei Akazawa made the agreement on Tuesday (22 July).
The announcement Tuesday evening sent Japan's benchmark Nikkei stock index climbing almost 4% to its highest in a year, led by stocks in automakers with Toyota (7203.T), more than 14% and Honda (7267.T) nearly 11%.
Shares in major automakers surged: Toyota rose more than 14%, Honda gained 11%, while Mazda and Subaru both advanced more than 17%. Japan’s Topix index closed up 3.2%. The yen weakened slightly, trading at ¥146.8 against the dollar.
The trade deal lowers tariffs on auto imports and spares Tokyo from punishing new levies on other goods in exchange for a $550 billion package of U.S.-bound investment and loans.
It is the most significant of a clutch of agreements that Trump has bagged since unveiling sweeping global levies in April.
It comes ahead of a 1 August deadline by the Trump administration to conclude bilateral tariff talks.
Industry reaction
Japanese manufacturers broadly welcomed the outcome. However, some American industry representatives raised concerns.
“Any deal that charges a lower tariff for Japanese imports with virtually no U.S. content than the tariff imposed on North American-built vehicles is a bad deal for U.S. industry,” said Matt Blunt, President of the American Automotive Policy Council.
President Trump claims the deal will improve U.S. access to Japan’s market for vehicles, rice, and other agricultural goods.
In exchange, Japan will face a 15% tariff on exports to the U.S. which is lower than the previously threatened 27.5%, but higher than the 10% interim rate applied during negotiations.
Trump also confirmed that Japan had agreed to form a joint venture with the U.S. on a long-proposed liquefied natural gas project in Alaska.
The deal was concluded just days after Japan’s ruling party suffered a setback in upper house elections. Japanese media have reported that Prime Minister Ishiba may step down in the coming weeks, though he has publicly denied such plans.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba welcomed the outcome, noting that the auto tariff reduction came without quotas and represents “the lowest figure among countries with a trade surplus with the U.S."
AnewZ has learned that India has once again blocked Azerbaijan’s application for full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, while Pakistan’s recent decision to consider diplomatic relations with Armenia has been coordinated with Baku as part of Azerbaijan’s peace agenda.
A powerful eruption at Japan’s Shinmoedake volcano sent an ash plume more than 3,000 metres high on Sunday morning, prompting safety warnings from authorities.
A day of mourning has been declared in Portugal to pay respect to victims who lost their lives in the Lisbon Funicular crash which happened on Wednesday evening.
The UK is gearing up for Exercise Pegasus 2025, its largest pandemic readiness test since COVID-19. Running from September to November, this full-scale simulation will challenge the country's response to a fast-moving respiratory outbreak.
A Polish Air Force pilot was killed on Thursday when an F-16 fighter jet crashed during a training flight ahead of the 2025 Radom International Air Show.
A recent Federal Reserve Bank of New York (New York Fed) study reveals that while the use of artificial intelligence (AI) among businesses has grown significantly over the past year, very few companies have carried out AI-related layoffs.
Rising concerns over the U.S. economy and ongoing tariff disputes have put global government bonds under selling pressure, experts say. Donald Trump’s push for interest-rate cuts, combined with a major spending bill, has shaken investor confidence, sending bond prices down while yields rise.
Access to Google services was restored Thursday after a region-wide outage cut off millions of users across dozens of countries, with disruptions reported in platforms including YouTube, Gmail and Maps.
The pound and the yen came under strain on Wednesday, weighed down by renewed investor concerns over global fiscal health and political uncertainty in Japan.
The price of gold surged sharply on Wednesday, reaching a new record of $3,530.08 per ounce. Analysts say the rise is driven by expectations of a U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) rate cut in September and concerns over the central bank’s independence.
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