Abstract: Under the trend of fragmented global digital governance, developed economies are vying for the power to formulate global digital trade rules, and the regulatory power in the process of international digital trade rule making has become a key arena for great power competition. As one of the pioneering countries in the global digital economy, Japan, out of the historical, economic and political triple motivation of realizing“full normalization”, reshaping regional digital economic and trade rules, and seizing the opportunity in the digital game of great powers, has reacted positively in the digital era, and has been relentlessly pursuing the enhancement of the rule-based power in the stage of creation of international digital trade rules. The Japanese government has promoted Japans digital trade rule system through a series of macro national strategies serving the domestic e-commerce industry, actively participating in free trade agreements that include high standard digital trade rules, leading multilateral e-commerce negotiations, and actively engaging in digital trade cooperation and assistance to emerging economies. By Promoting its digital trade rules system through regional multilateral trade agreements and cooperation frameworks, Japan has achieved certain regulatory powers in the first thirty years of digital globalization. However, with the deepening of globalization of the digital economy, Japan still faces limitations in enhancing its regulatory power in international digital trade rule making due to three factors: its strength in digital economy development, its ability to develop the digital economy, and its partnership in digital trade cooperation.

Key words: international digital trade rules, Japanese digital economy, regulatory power, globalization of digital economy, global digital governance