Japan requests new US tariff treatment be as favourable as 2025 agreement, government says

TOKYO, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Japan has requested that its treatment under a new U.S. tariff regime be as favourable as an agreement reached by the two sides last year, the government said on Tuesday.

Japanese trade minister Ryosei Akazawa and U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick reaffirmed during a call on Monday that the two countries would continue to implement the agreement reached last year "in good faith and without delay," Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said.

"We intend to continue implementing the agreement steadily," Kihara said. "We will also continue asking the United States to implement it steadily." He added that Japan would continue to closely monitor the situation.

The call between Akazawa and Lutnick followed the U.S. Supreme Court's decision last Friday to strike down U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff programme.

In response, Trump raised tariffs to 15% on imports from all countries, the maximum allowed under a law separate to the one the Supreme Court examined.

In July, the U.S. and Japan agreed upon a trade deal that cut tariffs on autos and other goods to 15%, while Japan agreed to a $550 billion package of loans and investment into the U.S.

Earlier this month, the two countries agreed to accelerate talks on the first batch of investments under the deal.

Trump invited Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to visit Washington next month.