Japan Considers Increasing U.S. Soybean Imports in Tariff Talks, Nikkei Reports

By Aaditya Govind Rao

April 24 (Reuters) – Japan is considering increasing its soybean imports from the U.S. as part of tariff negotiations, the Nikkei reported on Thursday.

Japan, whose soybean imports are handled by the private sector, could ask companies to boost trade with the U.S. amid the latter’s trade war with China, the report said.

About half of U.S. soybean exports were shipped to China in 2024, totaling nearly $12.8 billion in trade, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

However, last month China suspended the soybean import licences of three U.S. firms in retaliation for President Donald Trump’s additional tariffs on Chinese goods.

Japan’s tariff negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, is scheduled to visit the U.S. from April 30 for a second round of talks with his counterpart, after previously requesting a revocation of the tariffs.

(Reporting by Aaditya Govind Rao in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri and Mohammed Safi Shamsi)