Trump's $550 Billion Japan 'Investment' Deal Isn't What It Seems: Tokyo's Top Negotiator Says 98% of It Will Be Loans And Guarantees

Japan's top negotiator is pushing back against claims that the country is handing over hundreds of billions of dollars to the U.S. under a new economic deal with the Trump administration, clarifying that actual investment will make up just 1% to 2% of the $550 billion agreement.

What Happened: On Saturday, Tokyo’s Chief Negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, said in an NHK interview that “it's not that $550 billion in cash will be sent to the US,” but instead it includes a combination of investments, loans, and guarantees backed by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI).

According to Akazawa, “investment will comprise 1% or 2%” of the total, and the rest will be structured as loans and guarantees, according to a Bloomberg report.

See Also: Japan PM Ishiba Resignation Seen As Inevitable, Decision Expected In August: Report

For the loans, Japan will collect interest payments, and for the loan guarantees, “if nothing happens, Japan will collect fees,” Akazawa said. “For that part, Japan's just making money.”

Tokyo expects to save about ¥10 trillion ($68 billion) from reduced U.S. tariffs under the new deal, even as it agreed to a smaller share of the profits.

“By letting the US have 90% of the profits rather than 50%, I think Japan's loss will be at most a couple of tens of billions of yen,” Akazawa said. Addressing public criticism, he said, “people are saying various things, such as ‘You sold out Japan,' but they're wrong.”

Why It Matters: This is in sharp contrast to President Donald Trump’s framing of this deal, with claims that it “will create Hundreds of Thousands of Jobs.”

In a Truth Social post last week, Trump said, “Japan will invest, at my direction, $550 billion dollars into the United States, which will receive 90% of the Profits.”

Read More:

• Trump’s $550 Billion Japan Trade Deal Could Benefit Taiwanese Chip Giants Like TSMC’s US Expansion—If It Aligns With Tokyo’s Interests

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