Japan Proposing Shipbuilding Cooperation in U.S. Tariff Talks

   Tokyo, May 12 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government is proposing in tariff negotiations with the United States that the two countries cooperate in shipbuilding, sources said Monday.
   Tokyo has taken the approach as U.S. President Donald Trump's administration seeks to revive his country's shipbuilding industry in order to compete with China, which holds a dominant market share.
   Japan hopes that offering technical assistance for shipbuilding can be used as a bargaining chip to win concessions on automotive tariffs and other issues.
   According to the Japanese government's 2024 white paper on land, infrastructure, transport and tourism, China accounted for 48.9 pct of the world's new ship construction in 2023, followed by South Korea at 28.5 pct and Japan at 15.6 pct. The United States, once a leader in shipbuilding, was far behind.
   Washington is concerned that the decline of the U.S. shipbuilding industry may have a negative impact on national security. It plans to accelerate the reconstruction of the sector in cooperation with allies Japan and South Korea.

(2025/05/12-21:03)