Lutnick says update coming this week on Japan's $550 billion U.S. investment

The United States will make an announcement thisweekonJapan’s$550billioninvestmentin the U.S., Commerce Secretary HowardLutnicksaid, as a top Japanese trade envoy was reportedly planning to visit Washington to formalize the package.

“The Japanese agreement, which we’re going to announce later thisweek, that’s $550billionat the hand of Donald Trump,”Lutnicktold the Ingraham Angle show on Fox News on Monday night.

The Japanese funds could beused for the manufacturing of products such as semiconductors, antibiotics or rare earths in the U.S.,Lutnickadded.

Washington and Tokyoagreed in Julyto set a reduced 15% tariff on Japanese imports in exchange for a $550billionpackage of U.S.-boundinvestmentthrough government-backed loans and guarantees, but details of its contentsremain obscure.

Trump hastoutedthe package as “our money to invest, as we like”, while Japanese officials have stressed theinvestments will be determined by whether they will also benefit Japan.

SoftBank Group’s$2billioninvestmentin Intelannouncedlastweekwas not part of the package at the moment, a Japanese government source has told Reuters.

Japanese broadcaster FNNreportedon Monday that Tokyo’s top trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa will visit the U.S. as soon as thisweekto discuss a document to formalize the agreement on the Japaneseinvestment.

Akazawa, speaking at a regular Tuesday briefing, said his next U.S. trip was not decided and declined to comment onLutnick’s remarks. Tokyo will keep pressing Washington to implement the deal to cut U.S. tariffs on Japanese goods soon, he added.

The U.S. has urged Japan to have a written agreement on theinvestmentplans, but Japan prefers to keep the dealless legally-binding, the Nikkei business daily reportedearlier onTuesday.

The lack of acleardocument on the trade agreement had createdconfusionin Tokyo about tariff rates untilLutnickand U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent clarified earlier this month that Japanese goods were exempt from overlapping leviesand an earlier presidential order would be amended.

Lutnickand Bessent also promised, during Akazawa’s previousvisit on August 7, that Trump would issue another order to lower tariffs on Japanese cars to 15% from 27.5%, but did not specify when.

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has said Tokyo did not seek a written trade agreement with Washington because it wanted a swiftresolution and to ensure Trump’s tariffs on key Japanese exports such as autos were lowered quicly.

Ishiba’s support ratehas surgedin recent polls thanks in part to the trade deal, even after his ruling coalition lost its majority in an upper house election last month.