Trump trade war: How Japan shaped Trump's perspective on tariffs

As a young real estate developer in New York, Trump said a rising Japan was ripping off the US.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatch LiveHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessFuture of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsArtsArts in MotionTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersHow Japan sparked Trump's 40-year love affair with tariffs14 hours agoNada TawfikNew York correspondentGetty ImagesDonald and Ivana Trump disembark the Trump Princess yacht in New York in 1988When Donald Trump's fortunes took a downturn in the 90s and he needed to raise cash fast, he sailed his 282ft (85m) superyacht, the Trump Princess, to Asia hoping he could attract Japan's wealthy.

It wasn't the first time the businessman had sought out Japanese buyers or lenders for his projects.

In the cut-throat world of New York real estate, Trump had a front-row seat from his Fifth Avenue skyscraper of Tokyo's buying spree in the 80s of iconic US brands and properties, including Rockefeller Center.

It was then that his worldview on trade and America's relations with its allies was formed, and his fixation on tariffs, a tax on imports, began.

"He had a tremendous resentment for Japan," says Barbara Res, a former executive vice-president at the Trump Organization.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gp5pw654lo

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