Japan is likely to reach an agreement with the United States on Tuesday night on resuming its import of American beef, Kyodo News reported earlier in the day.

The resumption of the beef trade is to be confirmed through a teleconference between senior officials from the two countries, Japanese government sources said, adding that Japan's move comes after the U.S. side strengthened safeguard measures against the mad cow disease.

The first U.S. beef shipment after the resumption of the trade is expected to arrive in Japan in the second half of July at the earliest, the sources were quoted as saying.

The Japanese government plans to send officials to the United States to examine the implementation of export quarantine measures in U.S. meat-packing facilities, Kyodo said.

Japan suspended all U.S. beef imports on Jan. 20, only a month after resuming the trade, as it detected in a U.S. beef shipment a bovine spine, which is banned for imports for fear of the mad cow disease.

Source: Xinhua