A senior official of the Fair Trade Commission on Wednesday called for prudence in adopting emergency import curbs.
Import restrictions, which are allowed under a safeguard provision of the World Trade Organization, could adversely affect Japanese consumers as well as the domestic industry's efforts to improve international competitiveness and promote structural reform, FTC Secretary General Akio Yamada told a news conference.
Japan on Monday imposed a 200-day curb on imports of three farm products, mostly from China, an action that has prompted requests from numerous domestic industries that further import barriers be erected.
The WTO mechanism is designed to slow imports to allow a specific industry to adjust to heightened competition from foreign suppliers.
Yamada, noting the U.S. fair trade watchdog presented Congress with reports on price rises after the imposition of import curbs, said the FTC may do the same as the occasion demands.