Akasawa Ryosei, Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry. Reuters Yonhap News

Kyodo News reported on the 10th that Akasawa Ryosei, the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry who served as the Japanese government’s point person during tariff negotiations with the U.S. Donald Trump administration, will visit the United States this week.

According to the report, Akasawa plans to visit the United States from the 11th to the 14th and hold talks with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. Kyodo said the two sides are expected to conduct final consultations on the first item among the $550 billion (about 802 trillion won) in U.S.-bound investment proposals that Japan pledged when the trade negotiations were concluded last summer.

Japan and the United States are reportedly coordinating candidates for the first U.S. investment item, including gas-fired power facilities for data centers, a synthetic diamond production plant, and crude oil loading ports. If Secretary Lutnick and Minister Akasawa agree on the sector, U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to make the final decision thereafter.

The Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported that President Trump is displeased with Japan’s delay in U.S.-bound investment. The paper said, “Secretary Lutnick initially told President Trump that he would decide the first item of (Japan’s investment in the U.S.) by the end of 2025, but because the first project is expected to exceed 6 trillion yen (about 56 trillion won) in scale, it is taking time to draw up the plan,” adding that President Trump has shown distrust that ‘Japan is deliberately slowing the negotiations.’

On the 8th, ahead of Japan’s House of Representatives (lower house) general election, President Trump publicly expressed his support for Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. However, prior to that, the U.S. administration conveyed to the Japanese government that “President Trump is enraged over issues regarding Japan,” the Nikkei reported.