FM Motegi’s regular press conference on September 11, 2020 https://t.co/CxzCLKGP4R

— MOFA of Japan (@MofaJapan_en) September 11, 2020

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said he plans to hold talks with British trade minister Liz Truss later on Friday to discuss a post-Brexit bilateral trade deal and hopes to reach a broad agreement.

“I will hold talks with minister Truss this afternoon…I would like to reach a broad agreement today, if possible,” Motegi told a regular news conference. 

Japan, the world’s third largest economy, has for decades been a large foreign investor in British industry, particularly in consumer electronics and car manufacturing. The total value of bilateral trade in 2019 was 31.6 billion pounds ($41.5 billion) according to British data.

Britain is seeking a deal that uses the 2019 EU-Japan agreement as its template, and seeks to improve on its terms in strategic areas.

British analysis estimated that, in the long run, the trade deal could increase annual trade flows between  both countries by 15.2 billion pounds (¥2,069,237,579,079.95) and increase the size of the UK economy by 1.5 billion pounds (¥204,210,159,346.41).

Reuters