‘EU ready to scrap tariffs on Japanese car parts’

European car market speeds ahead in May

TOKYO/ PARIS: The EU is ready to propose immediately scrapping import tariffs on most Japanese car parts in trade negotiations now underway, the Nikkei daily said on Friday.

The EU, in return, is pushing for Japan to cut or scrap import tariffs on certain agricultural products, the paper said, putting Tokyo in a tight spot given strong domestic political opposition against opening up these areas to outside competition.

Japanese and European negotiators are continuing talks in Tokyo to reach a broad deal on signing an economic partnership agreement (EPA) in early July, the paper said without citing sources.

Signing an EPA with the EU, which comprises roughly 10 percent of Japan’s total foreign trade, is among key goals of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s “Abenomics” stimulus programs and growth strategy to revive the country’s stagnant economy.

The EU now imposes a tariff of around 3-4 percent on auto parts and a 10 percent tariff on cars imported from Japan. The EU is ready to scrap tariffs for more than 90 percent of auto parts imported from Japan immediately after the EPA takes effect, the Nikkei said.

The two sides remain at loggerheads on how long the EU would take to eliminate tariffs on cars. Japan wants them to be scrapped in seven years, while the EU is pressing to have more than 10 years to phase them out, the paper said.

Japan and the EU have been negotiating the EPA since 2013 to promote bilateral trade and investment by eliminating tariffs and improving investment rules.

Meanwhile, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association ACEA said that the European car market clocked up robust growth in May, with new car registrations returning almost to pre-crisis levels.

“In May 2017, passenger car registrations across the EU increased by 7.6 percent to 1.387 million units,” ACEA said in a statement.

“In volume terms, this result comes close to May 2007 levels, just before the economic crisis hit the auto industry,” the carmakers said.

With the exception of Britain, where new car registrations declined by 8.5 percent, Europe’s biggest markets performed well last month.

Sales sped ahead by 12.9 percent in Germany last month and by 11.2 percent in Spain, followed by France with a growth of 8.9 percent and Italy with 8.2 percent.

Taking the five months from January to May, demand for passenger cars also grew throughout the EU, with new registrations up 5.3 percent.

Italy, Spain, Germany and France all saw their markets grow over the first five months of the year, while Britain registered a slight decline, ACEA said.

German car giant Volkswagen remained Europe’s biggest manufacturer, with registrations of its VW, Audi, Skoda, SEAT and Porsche brands rising by 3.2 percent in the five-month period. It commands a 23.3-percent share of the market.

French maker PSA Peugeot Citroen saw its sales rise by 1.9 percent in the period from January to May, while new registrations of Renault raced ahead by 8.1 percent.

Each has a market share of 10.1 percent.

New registrations of Opel and Vauxhall, the European arms of US giant General Motors currently being taken over by PSA, slipped by 1.3 percent.

By contrast, US rival Ford saw its sales in Europe rise by 4.9 percent, new registrations of Fiat Chrysler were up 10.7 percent, Daimler sales grew by 7.8 percent and BMW sales were up 3.2 percent.

Japanese maker, Toyota, the world’s No. 2, also performed well, with registrations rising by 24.4 percent, while rival Nissan booked an increase of 6 percent.

The European market for new cars expanded by 6.8 percent to 14.64 million units in 2016, almost the level seen in 2008 when the economic crisis began. It fell as low as 11.8 million units in 2013.