Japan’s Hayashi: Will respond carefully to potential impacts of Trump’s tariffs

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi noted on Monday that “Japan faces significant challenges if its companies become targets amid US President Donald Trump's policies; the government will respond carefully to potential impacts.”

Additional quotes

Exports, particularly in services, demonstrated growth, counterbalancing the decline in domestic demand, while the year's value rose by 2.9% year-on-year, exceeding 609.3 trillion yen for the first time.

Domestic demand showed positive trends over the past three and a third quarters, despite personal consumption experiencing negative growth due to reduced disaster-related storage needs and a decline in beverage demand.

Domestic demand is increasing, primarily driven by equipment investment, despite the impact of a stock market crash and pauses in production and delivery by some automakers.

Looking ahead, continued improvement in employment and income is expected to support economic recovery.

Market reaction

At the press time, USD/JPY is falling further toward 151.50, losing 0.39% on the day, undermined by stronger-than-expected Japanese Q4 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data.