December 20, 2001	Thursday	Shawwal 4, 1422

TOKYO, Dec 19: Japan and China failed to break an impasse in a bitter trade row on Wednesday just two days before Tokyo is due to decide whether to invoke full import restrictions on three Chinese agricultural products.

“The final phase of negotiations is under way but our partner is quite rigid,” Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi told reporters at his official residence. “We want to discuss a little more patiently.”

If not settled in time, the row is set go before the World Trade Organization in what would be China’s first WTO dispute settlement since it became a member of the trade body last week.

But the two sides remain willing to hold more talks up until the last minute of the Friday deadline, Japan’s Foreign Ministry said after talks finished here.

“The Chinese side made some proposals towards settling the matter, and both sides deepened understanding through the negotiations,” the Japanese ministry said in a statement issued after the one-day meeting.

Japan was represented by Yoshiharu Takenaka, vice agriculture, forestry and fisheries minister for international affairs with the Chinese delegation led by Sun Zhenyu, vice minister of foreign trade and economic cooperation.

Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Takeo Hiranuma and Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Tsutomu Takebe may fly to Beijing to meet China’s Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation Shi Guangsheng, the Nihon Keizai newspaper said.

Japan has been asking China to put curbs on the three agricultural exports, while Beijing argues it would violate WTO rules to promise a certain export volume, the economic daily said, without citing sources.

The tit-for-tat row began in April when Japan slapped 200-day import restrictions on three farm imports — spring onions, shiitake mushrooms and rushes used to make traditional Japanese tatami mats — mostly imported from China.

Beijing retaliated in June by imposing 100 percent punitive tariffs on imports of Japanese motor vehicles, air conditioners and mobile phones.

Japan’s temporary “safeguard” measures expired on November 8.

Japan’s imports of the three farm products from China totaled 23.7 billion yen ($185 million) last year, while its exports of the industrial goods came to 66.6 billion yen, according to Japanese finance ministry data. Both make up a tiny proportion of trade between the two countries.

The Finance Ministry said in weekly data report Wednesday that Japan’s total imports of rushes jumped 71 percent in the week to December 14 from the same time last year. Imports of spring onions fell two percent and those of mushrooms dropped 26 percent.

Meanwhile, Japan’s Kyocera Corp. said it was in talks with Nippon Export and Investment Insurance, a Tokyo-based export insurance provider linked to the Trade Ministry, over possible compensation for losses resulting from the Chinese tariffs.—AFP