Overview
- A U.S. government fact sheet listed a Toyota plan to export U.S.-made vehicles to Japan and to open its Japan distribution platform to U.S. automakers, though Toyota says it is only studying the idea.
- Toyota CEO Koji Sato said the company is "studying the possibility" of reverse imports, Nissan executive Guillaume Cartier said the firm is "looking seriously," and Honda is also discussing the concept, according to reports.
- Practical hurdles include differing safety and emissions standards, left- versus right-hand-drive configurations, and Japanese market preferences, with Toyota saying government help would be needed to harmonize rules.
- Analysts expect any reverse imports to be limited to roughly 20,000 vehicles a year, underscoring the symbolic nature of the move relative to the about $68.5 billion U.S. trade deficit with Japan.
- Tokyo has also discussed buying Ford F-150 pickups as a gesture, and Toyota disputed President Trump's separate claim of a $10 billion U.S. investment as something it had not told him.