U.S. TRADE OFFICIAL SAYS JAPAN ACTION FOOLISH

  A high level U.S. trade official
  said it would be foolish for Japan to strike back against the
  United States for its sanctions on Japanese semiconductor
  electronics products.
      Asked by reporters if Japan was expected to retaliate
  against U.S. exports, Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce Bruce
  Smart replied, "That would be the height of foolishness."
      In addition, he doubted Japan could show enough progress in
  meeting the conditions of the agreement to avoid the actual
  imposition of the 300 mln dlrs in tariffs on April 17.
      Japan's 58.6 billion dlr trade surplus with the United
  States last year has come under fire in Congress concerned
  about the loss of jobs to foreign competition and with the
  record 169 billion dlrs U.S. trade deficit in 1986.
      President Reagan's sanctions decision won praise today from
  the two Democratic leaders of Congress.
      "I think it's about time," Senate Democratic Leader Robert
  Byrd of West Virginia told reporters. House Speaker Jim Wright
  of Texas told reporters before the opening of the House
  session, "It just shows we were right all along when we said
  something needs doing."
      Smart testified before a Senate Labor Committee hearing
  that last Friday's U.S. trade action would help U.S.
  negotiations on access to Japan for U.S. auto parts.
      Since last August Smart has been leading talks to open up
  Japan to purchases of more U.S.-made automotive parts. Last
  year, Japan racked up a 3.6 billion dlr trade surplus with the
  United States in these products.
      Both countries expect to conclude the talks by August 1987.
      "It's amazing to me that the Japanese were surprised. I
  hope it will persuade them we're serious," Smart said of the
  White House trade sanctions.
      The United States has tried to convince Japanese car
  companies of the quality of American-made parts and to draw
  them away from their traditional Japanese suppliers.
      "All we ask is a chance. We have a job to do persuading them
  we can do better than our reputation seems to be," he said.
      Measured per car, each American-made car contained about
  700 dlrs in Japanese auto parts while each Japanese-made car
  contained about 26 dlrs in U.S. auto parts, Smart said.
  

