By Malcolm Ferguson
Donald Trump is trying to squeeze American rice supplies into Japan without a trade negotiation.
In a Truth Social post Monday afternoon, the president claimed that the Japanese people and their government were 鈥渟poiled鈥 because they wouldn鈥檛 buy American rice. He then promised to send them a 鈥渓etter,鈥 in which he would assert the current rate of trade between the two nations.
鈥淭o show people how spoiled Countries have become with respect to the United States of America, and I have great respect for Japan, they won鈥檛 take our RICE, and yet they have a massive rice shortage,鈥 Trump wrote, casually insulting the nation with which America has one of its largest trading relationships. 鈥淚n other words, we鈥檒l just be sending them a letter, and we love having them as a Trading Partner for many years to come.鈥
Japan has been struggling with a rice crisis for the last couple of years. The grain, which is a foundational ingredient in Japanese cooking, first started slipping from supermarket shelves in 2023, when extreme heat waves led to low crop yields. Then, a possible 鈥渕egaquake鈥 warning last year inspired people to panic-buy the pantry essential. The ensuing shortage has seen rice prices more than double since the crisis began, reaching between 4,500 and 5,000 yen, according to government data.
But Trump鈥檚 threat is particularly ill-timed, leaving the U.S. president with little negotiating power on the matter: Japan鈥檚 national supermarket association reported last week that the shortage appears to be easing, with prices for a five-kilogram bag dropping below 4,000 yen for the first time in the last two months, finally reaching the target goal set by Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.