Trump tariffs: The British have not fared so badly after all

LeMonde

19 hours ago

On May 8, during a hastily arranged press conference, Donald Trump, in the Oval Office, and Keir Starmer, via video link from a Jaguar Land Rover factory in the Midlands, United Kingdom, hailed a "historic" agreement. It was the first US trade negotiation to be finalized since the American president's "Liberation Day" on April 2. "This historic deal delivers for British business and British workers protecting thousands of British jobs in key sectors including car manufacturing and steel," the British prime minister said, adding, "The UK has no greater ally than the United States."
The agreement was nothing like a classic trade treaty, which typically covers a wide range of products and results from years of negotiation. It was essentially about the UK avoiding punitive tariffs on exports of cars, steel and aluminum to the US. The US tariff on British vehicles was set to be reduced from 27.5% to 10% for an annual quota of 100,000 cars shipped to the US (the original rate would apply to any additional imported cars).
The 25% tariff on aluminum and steel imports was, for its part, slated for cancellation. However, the basic 10% customs duty would remain in place for all other British manufactured imports, as maintained by Washington. In return, the White House welcomed the opening of new British markets worth $5 billion (about €4.5 billion), including $700 million for ethanol exports and $250 million for agricultural products, such as American beef.