Storyline: The Trump administration announced on Monday that the lower 15 percent import tariffs on Japanese automobiles would be effective from 00:01 Eastern Time on Tuesday. According to the guidelines issued by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the new tariff rate applies to passenger vehicles, light-duty trucks, and auto parts manufactured in Japan. This tariff adjustment, which lowers the rate from the previous 27.5 percent to 15 percent, is based on an executive order signed by U.S. President Donald Trump on Sept 4 as an outcome of the U.S.-Japan trade agreement. However, Japanese automakers have expressed widespread dissatisfaction, noting that the 15 percent tariff remains significantly higher than the pre-Trump administration rate of 2.5 percent. Data shows that automobile exports account for about 20 percent of Japan's total exports, with the U.S. being its largest market. Due to the impact of tariffs, Japan's automobile exports to the U.S. in July fell by 28.4 percent year-on-year to 422 billion yen (about 2.8 billion U.S. dollars), while the export volume decreased by 3.2 percent to 123,500 vehicles. A previous survey by Japanese media company Nikkei of 1,069 companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Prime Market revealed that U.S. tariff increases have had broad adverse effects on multiple Japanese industries. Among them, the auto vehicles and parts sectors were the hardest hit, with profits declining by about 980 billion yen (about 6.67 billion U.S. dollars) in the second quarter, a year-on-year decrease of 45 percent. Honda, in particular, saw its net profit drop by 50 percent due to a significant increase in tariff-related costs. Shotlist: FILE: Washington D.C., USA - Date Unknown: 1. Various of White House FILE: Los Angeles, USA - Date Unknown: 2. Various of vessels at port 3. Crane moving container at port FILE: Tokyo, Japan - Aug 24, 2021: 4. Various of traffic FILE: Tokyo, Japan - April 23, 2019: 5. Various of Nissan dealership, sign FILE: Japan - Date Unknown: 6. Aerial shots of factory, Toyota sign 7. Various of Toyota dealership, sign FILE: Japan - Aug 12, 2020: 8. Various of vehicle production line FILE: Alliston, Ontario, Canada - April 15, 2025: 9. Various of exterior of Honda plant, sign, traffic. [Restrictions : No access Chinese mainland]