Kyodo News

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A U.S. industry group of the Big Three automakers unveiled a report Tuesday urging Japan to stop "both jawboning and intervening" in currency exchange markets.

DaimlerChrysler Corp., Ford Motor Co., General Motors Corp. and auto industry groups have already been distributing a joint document to government officials and lawmakers urging them to take action against Japan's interventions as unfair "export subsidies" for Japanese automakers, according to a copy of the document obtained earlier.

The report, compiled by the Automotive Trade Policy Council, slams Japan for "using currency manipulation to avoid making much-needed domestic economic reforms."

"In effect, Japan's weak-yen policy has given its huge exporters a huge subsidy and competitive advantage in the U.S. market, causing significant harm to U.S. manufacturers," says the report, titled "The Economic Impact of Japanese Currency Manipulation."

The Japanese government stopped its interventions in March last year amid criticism from the United States and other countries.

But the report says, "Even in 2005, senior Japanese government officials have continued to 'jawbone' global financial markets -- making repeated verbal threats of intervention designed to keep the yen's value artificially low."

Against this backdrop, the report urges the U.S. Treasury Department to use the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization to stop such verbal interventions.

Japanese automakers have made headway in both sales and market share in the United States. On the other hand, GM, the world's largest automaker, last month posted a first-quarter net loss of $1.1 billion, raising concerns about job cuts.

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