Japan Announces $450 BILLION Investment in US

As Donald Trump’s rhetoric has put the policies of Mexico and China in his sights, it’s needless to say that everyone else wants to stay out of his crossfire (and avoid having a target on their backs).

Not long after Donald Trump’s victory, Japan made it clear that they wanted nothing more than to work with the U.S. Trump had a meeting with the CEO of Japan’s SoftBank, which announced that they’ll be investing $50 billion into our economy, creating 50,000 jobs in the process. SoftBank has business in China – but they didn’t expand there. They want to expand here.

That’s just one business, of course, but the attitude of Japan’s government is the same. In fact, Japan’s prime minister is now expected to meet with Trump and roll out a huge economic cooperation initiative to boost growth in both our countries.

The so-called “Japan-U.S. growth and employment initiative,” which is expected to be presented when Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visits the White House Feb. 10, will involve $450 billion in market growth through new investments and the creation of 700,000 new jobs, reports the Yomiuri Shimbun.

Japan will reportedly invest in infrastructure development, as well as robotics, artificial intelligence, cyber, space, and defense projects in the U.S.

Among the projects included in the initiative are high-speed rail projects, plans for transportation infrastructure upgrades, technology sharing programs, advanced power generation projects, and other high-end programs.

H/T: The Daily Caller

Currently Japan has a $60 billion trade surplus with the U.S., with a near majority (40%) of our imports from them being cars and auto parts. Trump has criticized Japan in the past, arguing that it’s their trade policies that caused this. Recently, he said, “You look at what Japan has done over the years. They play the money market, they play the devaluation market and we sit there like a bunch of dummies.”

And his criticisms of Japan go back decades. In fact, his claim that Japan puts tariffs on U.S. auto imports is one he’s been making since the late 1980’s.

Japan’s government has rejected those accusations as “totally incorrect,” but appears intent on working with Trump. Presumably, the charges they face will be discussed at the meeting with the new president. In fact, ahead of their meeting, Japanese PM Abe is planning on increasing energy imports from the U.S., which would reduce their trade surplus.

One thing is totally clear: even if everyone doesn’t like his methods, Trump has proven in less than two weeks that he knows how to play hardball and negotiate. Winning!

Share this great news with your family and friends!

By Matt

Matt is the co-founder of Unbiased America and a freelance writer specializing in economics and politics. He’s been published... More about Matt

Mentioned in this article: