Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Australian counterpart Tony Abbott were expected to strike a deal on Monday on a free-trade pact at a summit in Tokyo, after seven years of negotiations, dpa cited local media as reporting. On Saturday, Japanese Farm Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and Australian Trade Minister Andrew Robb had a five-hour meeting, discussing how much Tokyo could lower its tariffs on beef, the sticking point in the negotiations, the Kyodo News agency reported. Japan was considering cutting its tariffs on beef from the current 38.5 per cent to somewhere in the 20s, while Australia could eliminate its tariffs on Japanese cars, Kyodo reported.
