US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz said Friday that President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi plan to meet in New York next week during the UN General Assembly. Japanese media reported earlier that Takaichi arranged the sit-down to align on China before Trump meets Chinese President Xi Jinping.
This will be their first in-person meeting since Washington helped prop up Japan's currency. In late July, the yen's drop to a near four-decade low around 164 per dollar triggered a joint yen-buying move by Washington and Tokyo, the first such coordination since 1998. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defended the move earlier this week, saying a stronger yen helps US exporters and reduces the need for Tokyo to liquidate US holdings to fund interventions in the FX market.
In addition to China-related frictions, the agenda will probably include trade issues and the conflict in Iran. The tariff truce the US and Japan struck last year included the creation of a Japanese investment vehicle totaling $550 billion. Takaichi has advocated enlarging Japan's armed forces to push back against China in the neighborhood, and Trump has lauded Tokyo for buying US-made defense gear. The Iran war has been a sticking point, with Trump earlier this year expressing irritation that partners, Japan among them, failed to answer his request for forces to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Their rapport is warm but not without awkward moments. In their March meeting, Takaichi emphasized a pledge to buy more US oil while the conflict in the Middle East strained energy flows. During the same trip, when asked about the Iran war, Trump brought up the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Takaichi was seen pressing her lips together and looking to her advisers, yet she conveyed her thanks multiple times, praising the president's commitment to the US Japan alliance.
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Currency moves ripple through trade and corporate earnings, and a firmer yen changes the math for exporters on both sides of the Pacific. If the talks touch tariffs, defense sales, or energy security, that shapes real demand for US goods and fuels. Japan's dependence on imported oil also keeps a spotlight on crude prices and shipping risks, which feed straight into gasoline, airfare, and inflation at home.
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