U.S. and Japanese trade negotiators were divided Monday on the first day of a two-day meeting over Washington's proposal to extend an existing bilateral automotive trade pact set to expire at the end of the year.
Wendy Cutler, assistant U.S. trade representative and leader of the U.S. side, demanded the auto pact be extended temporarily so that another pact can be negotiated after the new administration is launched in January, Japanese officials said.
But Hajime Furuta, deputy director general of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry's Machinery and Information Industries Bureau and head of the Japanese team, rejected the U.S. demand.
Washington is seeking a new five-year pact to replace the 1995 accord that requires Japanese automakers to outline their purchase plans for foreign auto parts. Alternately, they want further government measures to deregulate the Japanese auto market or an extension of the expiring accord.
But Tokyo has rejected both proposals, saying globalization has dramatically changed the international auto industry and has made it unnecessary for governments to meddle in industry activity.
The Japanese side, however, is willing to set up an informal forum in which Tokyo and Washington can discuss a wide range of automotive issues, the officials said.
The latest talks follow a vice ministerial meeting in Hong Kong in October and a working-level session earlier this month in Seattle. Both meetings failed to reach an agreement over how to deal with the auto trade issue after the existing pact expires.