U.S. President Donald Trump holds a bilateral meeting with Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the sidelines of the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York City on Sept. 25, 2019. (Photo: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst)

U.S., Japan sign limited trade deal

New York | Reuters — U.S. President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe signed a limited trade deal on Wednesday that cuts tariffs on U.S. farm goods, Japanese machine tools and other products while further staving off the threat of higher U.S. car duties. Trump said the deal would open up Japanese markets […] Read more




File photo of marbled Japanese beef on display at retail. (ES3N/iStock/Getty Images)

Japan set to grant TPP-level access for U.S. beef, pork

Tokyo | Reuters — The United States and Japan have reached the broad framework of a trade agreement, Japan’s Nikkei business daily said on Saturday, with Tokyo making concessions on its agriculture but none immediately apparent from Washington on automobiles. U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Economy Minister Toshimitsu Motegi reached the deal in Washington […] Read more


Wagyu beef on skewers at a Tokyo market. (Michal_Staniewski/iStock/Getty Images)

Japan now accepting Canadian OTM beef

The last of Japan’s BSE-related restrictions on Canadian beef are lifted as of last Friday, with the Japanese government’s agreement to allow beef from Canadian cattle over 30 months of age (OTMs). Citing industry estimates, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada said the added access announced Tuesday could mean an increase of up to 20 per cent […] Read more



CME August 2019 live cattle with Bollinger bands (20,2) and 50-day moving average in purple. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle rise as Japan drops U.S. beef import curbs

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) closed higher on Friday, buoyed by news that Japan will eliminate long-held restrictions on U.S. beef imports, traders said. The agreement reopens full beef trade after Japan in 2003 banned U.S. beef over concerns about bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), which roiled […] Read more



Japan beef buyers ease back a bit on purchases

Japan beef buyers ease back a bit on purchases

Reading Time: < 1 minute After surging in January, beef sales to Japan slipped a little in February as buyers adjust to the new Trans-Pacific trade deal, says the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association. An initial tariff cut (to about 27 per cent from 38.5 per cent) in the new year saw beef sales more than triple in January to 3,545 tonnes […] Read more