Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso said on Thursday he told U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin that Tokyo cannot accept discussions that link monetary policy to trade issues.

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The two countries also agreed that exchange-rate matters would be discussed between financial authorities, Aso told reporters after a meeting with Mnuchin.

"I told him that Japan cannot agree to any debate linking trade policy with monetary policy," Aso said.

"Japan won`t discuss exchange-rate matters in the context of trade talks," Aso said. He declined to comment when asked whether Washington made demands to include a currency provision in trade deals between the two countries.

Aso and Mnuchin held their bilateral meeting ahead of a summit between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington on Friday.

Mnuchin had said in the past that Washington would like to include a provision to deter currency manipulation in future trade deals, including with Japan, which has resisted the idea.

Currencies are a touchy issue for Japan because it has been criticized for keeping the yen low with massive monetary easing.

Tokyo has argued that its policy easing is aimed at achieving its 2 percent inflation target, not at gaining export advantage by weakening its currency.

(This article has not been edited by Zeebiz editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)