U.S. and Japan to Review Auto Trade Agreement

08/27/96

Reuters reported that U.S. and Japanese trade negotiators will meet next month to review last year's car trade agreement. US carmakers are complaining that not enough Japanese dealers are signing up to sell American cars.

Andrew Card, President of the American Automobile Manufacturers Association (AAMA) said, "We still haven't seen the kind of progress that would suggest that all of our expectations will be met. These are very modest expectations."

The Big Three U.S. carmakers hoped to sign up at least 200 new Japanese auto dealers by the end of this year. So far only 106 dealers have agreed to sell American cars, and most of those were independent dealers, said U.S. manufacturers said.

"Not one Toyota dealer has signed to sell imported product," Card said. Only two Nissan Motor Co Ltd dealers and one Honda Motor Co Ltd dealer has signed up with American manufacturers, he said.

The AAMA has asked the U.S. Trade Representative's (USTR) office to put Japan on its "watch list" for possible action because of concerns about the dealership issue. The USTR will make a decision on the request by the end of September.

In a recent letter to Acting U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky, Japanese manufacturers rejected U.S. complaints. The Japanese manufacturers pointed out increased U.S. car sales in Japan and argued that the 1995 trade agreement did not include targets or expectations of results from actions taken.

The AAMA said that Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors sales in Japan rose 36.5 percent since January, as compared to the same period last year. Total Big Three sales since January 1996 in Japan amounted to 74,671 vehicles.

Paul Dever -- The Auto Channel