UK and US in intensive talks on economic deal to reduce tariffs
The talks come as Britain announced a major new trade deal with India on Tuesday
[LONDON] The UK and US are in intensive discussions about an economic agreement that would reduce the impact of some tariffs, with a team of British officials in Washington to negotiate terms this week, sources familiar with the matter said.
There is optimism that a deal can be struck, but it was still too early to say whether an agreement could be reached this week, the sources said. A senior UK official said Britain would not be bounced into signing a deal that was not in its interests just because the Trump administration was keen to announce deals to soften the impact of its tariffs.
Securing a deal with US President Donald Trump has become a priority for UK premier Keir Starmer as he seeks to protect British industry from the impact of US tariffs, particularly 25 per cent levies on steel and car imports. The talks come as Britain announced a major new trade deal with India on Tuesday (May 6), the largest the UK has signed since it left the European Union, as it seeks to deepen economic ties with other nations amid the Trump tariff fallout.
The Financial Times (FT) reported earlier that the UK and US were closing in on a deal, which it said could be signed as soon as this week, citing unnamed officials in London and Washington. The deal would grant lower tariffs on UK exports of cars and steel to the US, the FT reported.
“Talks on an economic deal between the US and the UK are ongoing, but we are not going to provide a running commentary on the details of live discussions or set any timelines,” the UK’s Department for Business and Trade said. “We will continue to take a calm and steady approach to talks and aim to find a resolution to help ease the pressure on UK businesses and consumers.”
Starmer is also worried about tariffs the US may impose on the pharmaceuticals sector, threatening the UK’s growing life sciences sector, and the film industry, which would hurt Britain’s world-renowned film studios.
Another key point in the talks is Britain’s digital services tax, a 2 per cent levy on revenues derived from UK users of search engines, social media companies and online marketplaces.
The tax is unpopular with American firms such as Google parent Alphabet, Facebook and Instagram owner Meta, and Amazon, and the British government has been weighing plans to reduce or even abolish it as part of the bid to remove US tariffs. BLOOMBERG
Share with us your feedback on BT's products and services
