United States officials in Washington have periodically discussed whether to press Japan for the kind of interest rate cut announced today.

It's only just launched the Sigma but is already pressing Japan for more volume, and pretty soon will have the new-generation Shoguns.

He has sometimes found himself involved in major arguments within the council over how hard to press Japan and China.

International The Cabinet is divided over how strongly to press Japan on foreign participation in Japanese public works projects.

Defeat of Bill Feared At first, Washington denied it had pressed Japan for the money.

The United States had pressed Japan for nearly two years to open its closed domestic construction market to American concerns, on threat of trade retaliation.

The United States has been pressing Japan since the mid-1980's to buy more semiconductors, or computer chips, from American and other foreign manufacturers.

President Bush is expected to press Japan for new export quotas.

Tokyo acted to extend the quota on automobiles even though the Reagan Administration decided four years ago that it would no longer press Japan on the restraints.

The announcement caused speculation that he might press Japan for financial measures to bolster the ailing American economy and to help American companies doing business in Japan.