Japan, US narrow first $550 billion investment picks, including SoftBank-linked plan, sources say

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By Tamiyuki Kihara and Makiko Yamazaki

TOKYO, Jan 19 (Reuters) – Japan and the U.S. have short-listed a few projects as the first candidates under Tokyo’s ‍planned U.S.-bound $550 billion investment, including a project involving SoftBank Group, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

The two governments have intensified discussions to select the initial projects under the investment scheme, agreed as part of Tokyo’s deal with Washington to lower tariffs on Japanese exports to the United ‌States, the sources said on Monday.

They aim to ‌formalise the first project ahead of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s planned visit to the United States in the spring, according to the sources, who requested anonymity because the talks are not public.

A total of four sources ​said a large-scale infrastructure project involving SoftBank Group in data centre construction is among the short-listed projects.

SoftBank did not immediately respond ‍to Reuters’ request for comment.

Japan’s investment package ​would include equity, loans and loan guarantees from ​state-owned agencies Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and Nippon Export and Investment ‍Insurance (NEXI).

Japan and the U.S. have held four consultation committee meetings since December to discuss potential projects, involving the U.S. Department of Commerce and Department of Energy, and from Japan, the ministries of foreign affairs, finance and industry, along with JBIC and NEXI.

Talks have ‍already begun with Japanese megabanks, which could join JBIC in financing the projects, the sources added.

Based on input from the consultation committee, the investment ‍committee led by the ‍U.S. Secretary of Commerce will make recommendations to ​President Donald Trump, who will make the final ​selection.

While ⁠a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the legality ‌of Trump’s global tariffs is imminent, Tokyo has said it plans to proceed with the investment initiative regardless of the outcome, saying it’s designed to jointly build key supply chains and benefit both countries.

(Reporting by Tamiyuki Kihara and Makiko Yamazaki; Additional reporting by Miho Uranaka and Yusuke Ogawa; Editing ⁠by Michael Perry)