Trump administration to announce trade deal with Britain

Washington: President Donald Trump is expected to announce Thursday that the United States will strike a trade agreement with Britain, according to three people familiar with the plans.

Trump teased a new trade agreement in a social media post Wednesday night, though he did not specify which nation was part of the deal.

"Big News Conference tomorrow morning at 10:00 A.M., The Oval Office, concerning a MAJOR TRADE DEAL WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF A BIG, AND HIGHLY RESPECTED, COUNTRY. THE FIRST OF MANY!!!" he wrote.

A spokesperson for the White House declined to comment beyond Trump's post. A spokesperson for the British Embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment.

The agreement would be the first deal announced since Trump imposed stiff tariffs on dozens of US trading partners. He later paused those temporarily in order to allow other nations to reach agreements with the United States.

A deal between the United States and Britain could be a significant win for both countries, which have long sought closer economic cooperation.

Details of the agreement were not immediately clear. Both nations have discussed lowering British tariffs on American cars and farm goods, as well as removing British taxes on US technology companies. It also was not clear whether the agreement had actually been finalized, or if the countries would announce a framework for an agreement that they would continue negotiating in the coming months.

The Trump administration has been trying to cajole other countries into reaching quick trade deals with the United States. The president imposed punishing tariffs on dozens of its trading partners on April 2, but quickly backtracked after panic ensued in the bond market. Trump paused most of those tariffs for 90 days so that the United States could negotiate trade deals with other nations.

But he has left a 10 per cent global tariff in place, including on Britain. Unlike other countries, Britain was not subjected to higher "reciprocal" tariffs, because it buys more from the United States than it sells to it. Administration officials have said they are not considering removing the 10% tariff as part of a trade deal.

Britain is also subject to a 25 per cent tariff that Trump has placed on foreign steel, aluminum and automobiles, levies that British officials have been pushing their US counterparts to lift.

Trump's interest in striking a trade deal with Britain dates back to his first term, when his advisers negotiated with the country but didn't finalize an agreement. British officials have also been eyeing a trade agreement with the United States since Brexit, as a way to offset weaker relations with Europe. In the Biden administration, British officials continued to push for a deal with the United States but made little progress.

For Britain's prime minister, Keir Starmer, the trade deal would offer vindication for his assiduous cultivation of Trump. During his visit to the Oval Office in February, Starmer turned up with an invitation from King Charles III for the president to make a rare second state visit to Britain.

The Trump administration appears to be nearing deals with India and Israel, and is continuing to negotiate with South Korea, Japan, Vietnam and other nations. Still, Trump once again displayed his unpredictable approach to economic policy Tuesday when he downplayed the prospect of trade deals, saying other countries needed such agreements more than the United States.

"Everyone says 'When, when, when are you going to sign deals?'" Trump said, at one point motioning toward Howard Lutnick, his commerce secretary. "We don't have to sign deals. We could sign 25 deals right now, Howard, if we wanted to. We don't have to sign deals. They have to sign deals with us."

Trade experts have said that Trump may be intending to announce far more limited deals than traditional trade agreements, which cover most trade between countries and require congressional approval. Historically, free-trade agreements have taken the United States more than a year to negotiate.

In his first term, Trump renegotiated several US trade agreements, including a free-trade agreement with South Korea and NAFTA. But he also signed a series of more limited "mini-deals" with countries in which they reduced tariffs on a few kinds of goods or agreed to talk about a few sectors. Trump could also intend to announce a framework agreement, which would list the topics the countries have agreed to negotiate, rather than a finalized deal.

British officials have also been negotiating with the European Union, and on Tuesday agreed to a trade deal with India. The India deal would lower tariffs between the countries and secure more access for British firms to India's insurance and banking sectors, among other changes. The announcement followed nearly three years of negotiations.