A Study Of The Trump Administration's Trade Policy With Northeast Asian Allies

Japan and the Republic of Korea are American Allies in northeast Asia.Over the years,there has been serious bilateral trade imbalance between the United States and Japan and between the United States and the ROK.Upholding the “America First”principle,former American president Donald Trump announced to withdraw from the multilateral trade agreement TPP after taking office,instead he launched bilateral trade talks with Japan and the ROK.As a result,the existing U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement which came into effect in 2012 was amended,and the U.S.-Japan Trade Agreement on Goods was reached.This paper reviews the change of Trump administration's trade policies toward Japan and the ROK,probes into why the United States would renegotiate the bilateral trade agreements with the two countries,and briefly evaluates the effect of the two trade agreements.The Trump administration was committed to promoting “fair trade” policy and expected to cut its trade deficit with Japan and the ROK by expanding the export scale of agricultural products,automobiles,vehicle components and other products produced in the U.S.This way,more domestic jobs would be created,workers' income increased,and social tension would be eased.At the same time,launching trade talks with Japan and the ROK and reaching trade agreements is an important measure of the Trump administration to build bilateral free trade systems,reshape the trade rules,and form ties with Japan and the ROK against China.The current result reveals that the trade policies of the Trump administration towards Japan and the ROK are slightly effective in expanding the export scale of specific products,but they cannot fundamentally address American trade deficit.On the other hand,though the U.S.-Japan and U.S.-Korea bilateral trade agreements do contribute to the Trump administration establishing the bilateral free trade systems and play an active role in strengthening alliance with the two countries,but little effect has been achieved in confronting China.