In a move to usher in what the White House is calling “America’s next Golden Age,” the Trump administration is touting a plan that could see the use of up to $550 billion in Japanese investment for the building of new factories and infrastructure across the U.S.
That $550 billion may fund everything from shipbuilding to quantum computer, semiconductor manufacturing, and energy development.
According to the Wall Street Journal some of the projects “would be granted preferential treatment from the government, including expedited regulatory review.”
The White House is additionally thought to be weighing the possibility of granting leases that would give the Japanese investors “access to federal land and water.”
The exact details of how it will all work have not yet been released. But if the plan becomes reality, it could be the “key to fueling America’s next Golden Age,” remarked White House spokesman Kush Desai.
The “golden age” concept was referenced in remarks made by Trump at the United Nations on Tuesday, when he said, “America is blessed with the strongest economy, the strongest borders, the strongest military, the strongest friendships, and the strongest spirit of any nation on the face of the earth. This is indeed the golden age of America.”
A seven-page Memorandum of Understanding was signed earlier this month by the U.S. and Japan that will establish a committee, to be headed up by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, that will review and recommend specific projects for the President’s final approval.
The cost of any given project, according to the document, would be split evenly between the U.S. and Japan, while the U.S. would have the right to take 90% of any profits from the initial investment. At the same time, all Japanese companies interested in participating in a project would be given automatic priority over any other foreign company.
According to other media reports, establishment of the $550 billion fund was a primary factor in Trump’s decision to lower tariffs on Japanese goods from 25% to 15%.
In a statement issued by the White House it was noted that the Japanese investments in the U.S. will particularly target “critical industries of importance to our national and economic security.”
September 25, 2025
By Garry Boulard
Photo courtesy of U.S. Air Force, taken by Staff Sgt. Peter Reft
