Japan should aim for free trade agreement with US, panel says
8 May 2007
Japan Should Aim for Free Trade Agreement With U.S., Panel Says
By Mayumi Otsuma
May 8 (Bloomberg) — Japan should push for a trade agreement with the U.S. to reduce duties and investment barriers, members of the government’s key economic panel said.
The proposal was made by private-sector members of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy, including Takatoshi Ito, a professor of economics at Tokyo University. They plan to submit the plan to a meeting of the panel tomorrow.
Signing trade agreements is critical'' for Japan to respond to globalization, Ito said at a briefing in Tokyo today. Fellow panel member Shujiro Urata, a Waseda University professor, said he's concerned Japan may be lagging behind countries that are pushing for agreements to expand exports and imports.
A free trade agreement with the U.S. would beextremely important’’ for Japan, said Masamitsu Sakurai, president of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives. Areas in which Japan is uncompetitive, including agriculture, may be an impediment, he told reporters in Tokyo earlier today.
South Korea and the U.S. formed a deal on April 2 to eliminate duties on products such as autos and clothing and lowers investment barriers for insurers and banks in both countries. The accord with the U.S., South Korea’s third-largest trading partner, is expected to boost manufacturing exports by about $1.3 billion a year in 10 years, South Korean Finance Minister Kwon Okyu said on April 13, citing a recent study by a government think tank.
Japan also needs to overhaul its agricultural industry, which may be affected by opening markets and increasing imports, the panel members said. The government should consider ways to make it easier for more people to join the industry, according to the proposal.
