Japan, Mercosur to start EPA trade talks

TOKYO, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 26th May, 2026) Japan will start Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) talks with the South American trade bloc Mercosur, the Kyodo news agency reported on Tuesday.

The launch of the EPA talks is set to be announced at a summit meeting between Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on the sidelines of the Group of Seven meetings in France next month, Kyodo said.

Lula last year told the Mercosur summit in Buenos Aires that the bloc should focus on strengthening its ties with Asian nations such as Japan, China, South Korea, India, Vietnam and Indonesia.