Venezuela provides a good market for Japanese merchandise, whose exports to that country have been increasing in quantity every year in the past. Japanese purchases of Venezuelan merchandise, however, have not been increased correspondingly, thus making the trade between the two countries notably one-sided with the result that the Venezuelan Government attempted to restrict Japanese imports unilaterally.
Consequently, the Japanese Government instructed Mr. Kiyoshi Yamagata, Minister to Colombia, to proceed to Venezuela to open negotiations with the Venezuelan Government to maintain the market of Japanese merchandise there.
As a result of the negotiations, an understanding was reached between Japan and Venezuela on July 2nd that Japan purchase Venezuelan merchandise as much as possible while Venezuela impose no undue restrictive measure on the importation of Japanese goods on the ground of unbalanced trade relations between the two countries.