“Japan will firmly take necessary steps as we fully examine details of the new measures and their possible impact on the Japanese economy,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters, suggesting that his country will lobby for an exemption in the coming weeks before the measures are due to take effect.
The measures announced by Trump are part of his aggressive push to reset global trade in the belief that tax hikes on foreign-made products will strengthen domestic manufacturing.
Japan was given an annual duty-free quota of up to 1.25 million tons of steel under the former President Joe Biden 's administration. Japan's exported 1.18 million tons of steel to the U.S. in 2024, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute.
Japanese steel exports to the U.S. totaled 302.7 billion yen ($2 billion) in 2024, accounting for 1.4% of the total exports to America. Aluminum exports were much less, government data show.