TOKYO:

Japan has sought assurances from the US that Tokyo will not be put at a disadvantage under Washington’s latest tariff measures, urging that a potential 15% tariff not be applied to Japanese goods, its trade minister said.

Ryosei Akazawa said he made the request during a two-hour meeting in Washington with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. After the US Supreme Court knocked down some of Trump’s key tariffs in February, the US imposed a new 10% blanket levy that could rise to 15%, generating new global uncertainty.