The UK and US are poised to announce a trade agreement, the first by the White House since Donald Trump announced his sweeping global tariffs.
Trump said it was “a very big and exciting day” for both countries before a press conference in the Oval Office on Thursday. Keir Starmer is planning to deliver his own press conference at around the same time.
The leaders are expected to unveil a trade deal focused on lowering US tariffs on specific products, such as British steel, aluminium and cars.
Trump said the agreement was “a full and comprehensive one that will cement the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom for many years to come”.
Contrary to this, however, the deal is not expected to be comprehensive. UK officials said it would set out agreement on specific sectors where Trump has imposed tariffs and was a starting point from which the two sides would keep negotiating.
“Because of our long time history and allegiance together, it is a great honor to have the United Kingdom as our FIRST announcement. Many other deals, which are in serious stages of negotiation, to follow!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
A No 10 spokesperson said: “The prime minister will always act in Britain’s national interest – for workers, for business, for families. The United States is an indispensable ally for both our economic and national security. Talks on a deal between our countries have been continuing at pace and the prime minister will update later today.”
The trade deal is the first Trump has agreed with any country since he announced sweeping global tariffs last month. It will mark a victory for Starmer, who has been seeking to reduce the impact of the tariffs.
Senior British negotiators have been in Washington DC this week working to get a deal over the line before a UK summit with the EU on 19 May, while ministers are simultaneously pursuing closer ties with Brussels.
Two of the outstanding issues in the US talks were Trump’s tariffs on the pharmaceutical and film industries, both of which would be highly damaging for the UK.
UK ministers have offered concessions including lower tariffs on some US products and changes to the digital services tax on US tech firms. They have ruled out lowering food standards that ban chlorine-dipped chicken or hormone-fed beef from being sold in the UK.
The US tariffs include a 10% import tax on all UK exports and a 25% charge on steel, aluminium and cars. The 10% baseline tariff is not expected to change.
John Healey, the defence secretary, said: “The US is an indispensable ally for the UK, both on economic and national security grounds.” He told Times Radio: “Since the prime minister visited the White House in February we have been in detailed talks about an economic deal.”
JD Vance, the US vice-president, raised hopes of a breakthrough in talks with the UK three weeks ago when he said there was “a good chance that, yes, we’ll come to a great agreement that’s in the best interest of both countries”.
Earlier this week, Starmer announced that a free trade agreement with India had been concluded after more than three years of negotiations. This will lower tariffs on a range of British exports including cars and whisky, and Indian imports including clothing and some food items.
Trump’s tariffs gave impetus to the negotiations with Delhi, with both the UK and India seeking to mitigate their impact. India is also in advanced talks for a deal with the US.
The Bank of England governor, Andrew Bailey, said the deal was excellent news and would “help to reduce uncertainty”. He warned, however, that the UK was “a very open economy and is affected by the tariffs affecting other economies”.
The Liberal Democrats called for parliament to be given a vote on any US-UK deal “so it can be properly scrutinised”.
Daisy Cooper, the party’s deputy leader, said: “If the government is confident the agreement it has negotiated with Trump is in Britain’s national interest, it should not be afraid to bring it before MPs.”
