Business leaders in Japan on Sunday expressed their hope that Joe Biden will be committed to restoring the global economy and containing the coronavirus pandemic, as they congratulated him on his victory in the U.S. presidential election.

Hiroaki Nakanishi, chairman of the Japan Business Federation, or Keidanren, said he hopes Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and Biden will build a trust relationship to promote bilateral ties.

"We hope (Biden) will play a leading role in rebuilding the global order and economy and curbing the spread of new coronavirus infections through closer coordination with other countries," the head of the nation's most influential business lobby said in a release.

President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of international agreements and implemented protectionist trade measures. The U.S. has had more coronavirus cases than any other nation..

Kengo Sakurada, chairman of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives, said he believes the former vice president will push ahead with addressing challenges such as the pandemic, reviving the economy, and frayed relations with China.

Akio Mimura, the head of the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, also voiced hopes for Biden's leadership in bolstering the economy and improving ties with other countries.

After an annual conference held online late last month, Japanese and U.S. business leaders called on their governments to promote policies to help strengthen the free and rules-based trading system around the world as the pandemic prompts some governments to take protectionist measures.

Biden is expected to seek to strengthen alliances with countries including Japan, and to work with allies and partners to address China's alleged unfair trade practices and other behavior deemed as going against international rules.

He also plans to invest heavily in a clean-energy economy to tackle climate change and create jobs.