Japanese Prime Minister Noboru Takeshita and European Economic Community officials agreed Tuesday to step up trade contacts. Takeshita responded favorably to a suggestion by EEC Commission President Jacques Delors to create a panel of experts to discuss technical aspects of the EEC's rocky trade relations with Japan, officials said. Takeshita also stressed the need for Japan and the 12-nation EEC to widen their relations beyond trade to cultural and scientific sectors. ``The relationship between Europe and Japan is not very strong or as well developed'' as that between the United States with Europe and Japan, an aide to Takeshita told reporters. Senior EEC and Japanese officials meet annually. An EEC official said Delors believed regular meetings of experts could be useful in defusing trade tensions. The EEC is conducting numerous investigations of allegations of dumping by Japanese exporters. The EEC official, who asked not to be named, said EEC Foreign Trade Commissioner Willy De Clercq noted a ``remarkable improvement in trade relations'' between the 12-nation trade bloc and Japan, even though the EEC continues to register a large trade deficit with Japan. The gap shrank by 4 percent in 1987, but was still $25 billion. For his part, Takeshita said the EEC's plans to turn the 12 EEC states into a single, borderless market by the end of 1992 was good for Japan. But his aide quoted him as saying, ``The ... single market after 1992 should be the one which is open to the outside world'' and that the EEC should remove restrictions on Japanese exports. But he dismissed the idea of reciprocity in trade, an issue the EEC has given high priority in order to gain greater access for European goods to the Japanese market. ``We fully understand what (the EEC) Commission people are saying on reciprocity but Japan cannot agree to reciprocity on a sectoral basis,'' Takeshita was quoted as saying. Among specific trade issues discussed were Japan's high taxes on imported liquor and cars, the difficulties of foreign companies' bidding on Japanese public works projects and better access for EEC exports of telecommunications hardware and semiconductors. The EEC side also urged Japan to liberalize its banking sector. Officials said Delors stressed European banks must be able to establish themselves in Japan to make it easier to finance European exports and investments. De Clercq also called on Japan to quickly comply with a General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade ruling to amend an accord with the United States on trade in semiconductors. The world trade body has ruled the deal discriminates against the EEC. Takeshita also asked Delors' advice as to the best way to distribute $500 million Japan has earmarked as special economic assistance to Africa. ``We are aware that European countries have a long relationship with African countries,'' the aide quoted Takeshita as saying.
