Rice from Japan government stockpiles hits shelves
Rice from the Japanese government stockpiles sold through special no bid contracts has hit store shelves as prices for the staple remain stubbornly high.
Major supermarket operator Ito Yokado began selling the grain on Saturday at an outlet in Tokyo's Ota Ward. It signed a contract to buy 5,000 tons harvested in 2022 through the No Bid program. Employees stacked up 500 bags of rice in a dedicated section after a truck arrived. A 5 kilogram bag was priced at 2,160 yen including tax, were about $15, roughly half the price of the rice in most stores. Purchases were limited to one per family. All the bags sold out about 30 minutes after the store opened at 10 AM.
Compared to the government stockpiled rice, we don't know what will happen to the prices of other rice. I hope to continue to provide rice from stockpiles as one option.
Iris Oyama also signed a contract to purchase 10,000 tons and started selling government stockpiled rice on Saturday. Eager customers lined up to purchase the grain, but not all were successful.
I'm so glad. They're selling it for about half the usual price, which I really appreciate.
I didn't expect such a line. I wanted the rice because other rice is so high.
Trump accuses China of 'violating' trade agreement with US
US President Donald Trump says China's violated a trade agreement with his nation but stopped short of saying how.Concerns are growing. Trade tensions could escalate again depending on future negotiations. Trump posted on social media on Friday. I made a fast deal with China in order to save them from what I thought was going to be a very bad situation. He added,
because of this deal, everything quickly stabilized and China got back to business as usual. Trump then said the good news was everyone was happy, but then added the bad news was China has totally violated its agreement with the US.
Trump was later asked about this post by reporters.
I'm sure that I'll speak to President Xi and hopefully we'll work that out.
Trump's comments came after Treasury Secretary Scott Besson told Fox News Channel's Special Report on Thursday trade talks with China were a bit stalled. The US and China agreed in mid-May to cut additional tariffs on each other by 115 percentage points.Washington is calling for more market access in reducing the bilateral trade deficit.
US defense chief calls for cooperation to boost deterrence against China
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has urged America's allies in Asia to increase defense spending in the face of what he called a real threat posed by China. Hegseth spoke at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on Saturday, the second day of the Regional Security Forum.China has demonstrated that it wants to fundamentally alter the region's status quo. Any attempt by communist China to conquer Taiwan by force would result in devastating consequences for the Indo-Pacific and the world.
Although he repeatedly criticized China by name, Hexeth said Washington does not seek conflict with Beijing. However, he said the US cannot look away or ignore the situation, and that China's behavior must be taken as a wake-up call.Trump touts US-Japan steel deal, but says it is not final
US President Donald Trump has touted a deal between Japan's Nippon Steel and US Steel. He says the American company is going to have a great partner. Trump also announced that starting next Wednesday, he will double tariffs on imported steel and aluminum from 25 to 50%.We're here today to celebrate a blockbuster agreement that will ensure this storied American company stays and American company. You're going to stay in American company, you know that, right? But we're going to have a great partner.
Trump on Steel promised to invest $14 billion in US Steel. He said it will be the largest investment ever in the state of Pennsylvania and in America's steel industry. Trump stressed the importance for US Steel to be kept under US control and to stay an American company.
I'm very happy with the direction of what US Steel, the direction US Steel is going, and we're excited about the changes that are about to happen and all the jobs that are going to bestable here in America. I also got the impression that Japanese people really care about their employees.
Later in the day, after flying back to an Air Force base near Washington, Trump said the deal had not been finalized.I have to approve the final deal with Nippon, and we haven't seen that final deal yet. Trump is expected to make his final decision by June 5 and announce it. Observers say they're closely watching details of the deal, including the size of the stake in US Steel that Nippon Steel will be allowed to take.
The agreement is expected to guarantee that US Steel's production capacity will not be reduced for a certain period, and that a majority of the company's board members will be US citizens.
Japan, US agree to hold more rounds of tariff talks before G7 summit
Top officials from Japan and the United States have wrapped up another round of tariff talks in Washington. They agreed to work toward reaching a deal, possibly on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in mid-June.Japan's chief negotiator, Economic Revitalization Minister Akazawa Ryosei, spoke for about two hours on Friday with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
Akazawa repeated his firm call for a review of Washington's tariffs on Japan.
We confirmed that we are fully aware of each other's positions and also that our discussions toward an agreement are making progress.
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And those are the top stories for this hour.♫～
And that's a wrap for this edition of NHK Newsline. I'm Ramin Mellegard. Thank you very much for joining us.
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