Latest news with #US-UK
Yahoo
16 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
UK trade secretary to seek exemption from US steel and aluminium tariffs
The UK's trade secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, will meet his US counterpart next week to thrash out a timeline for exempting the UK from US steel and aluminium tariffs after Donald Trump announced he would double them. British officials are seeking clarity on the implications of Trump's announcement on Friday night that he planned to double the tariffs from 25% to 50% from Wedneday 4 June, piling further pressure on global steel trade. Reynolds is expected to meet his US counterpart, Jamieson Greer , at the OECD meeting in Paris next week. He will seek to agree a timeline for implementing the deal agreed to lower steel, aluminium, auto and other product tariffs. A UK government spokesperson said: 'The UK was the first country to secure a trade deal with the US earlier this month and we remain committed to protecting British business and jobs across key sectors, including steel.' 'We are engaging with the US on the implications of the latest tariff announcement and to provide clarity for industry.' The Guardian reported that British officials were intensifying trade talks with the US and hope to see the deal implemented within weeks. A government source said: 'Some countries are viewing the court ruling as an indication that they were right not to negotiate over tariffs. We're taking the opposite view, and trying to get this deal implemented as soon as possible.' Trump and Keir Starmer announced a US-UK trade deal earlier this month under which on British steel and aluminium will be reduced to zero, and tariffs on up to 100,000 British cars a year will be reduced from 25% to 10%. The deal did not cover Trump's blanket 10% tariffs on all foreign imports, which a federal court overturned last week, arguing that the US president had overstepped his powers. An appeals court paused the ruling and said Trump's tariffs could continue while it examines the arguments. The European Commission said on Saturday that it 'strongly' regretted Trump's decision to double steel and aluminium tariffs, and warned that the EU was prepared to retaliate. 'This decision adds further uncertainty to the global economy and increases costs for consumers and businesses on both sides of the Atlantic,' a spokesperson for the commission said, adding that 'the tariff increase also undermines ongoing efforts to reach a negotiated solution'. 'The EU is prepared to impose countermeasures, including in response to the latest U.S. tariff increase.' 'The European Commission is currently finalising consultations on expanded countermeasures. If no mutually acceptable solution is reached, both existing and additional EU measures will automatically take effect on 14 July – or earlier, if circumstances require.'
Yahoo
16 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
UK forging ahead with US trade talks, despite court block on Trump's tariffs
British officials are forging ahead in their trade talks with the US despite a recent court decision overturning many of Donald Trump's tariffs, and hope to have a deals covering cars, metals and aeroplane parts in place within weeks. A team of British negotiators spent much of last week in Washington talking to their American counterparts about how to implement the deal was signed earlier this month, including how quickly it can be passed by parliament and Congress. The talks come despite a ruling last week by a federal court overturning Trump's blanket 10% tariffs, which Downing Street believes will eventually be overruled by the president's allies on the supreme court. But on Thursday night, an appeals court paused the ruling while it looks more closely at the arguments – allowing Trump's administration to keep them in place. One government source said: 'Some countries are viewing the court ruling as an indication that they were right not to negotiate over tariffs. We're taking the opposite view, and trying to get this deal implemented as soon as possible.' A government spokesperson said: 'The UK was the first country to secure a deal with the US in a move that will protect British business and jobs across key sectors, from autos to steel. 'We are working to ensure that businesses can benefit from the deal as quickly as possible and will confirm next steps in due course.' The US president announced the US-UK trade deal earlier this month from the Oval Office, calling it 'very special for the UK and special for the United States'. Trump surprised Downing Street with the timing of his announcement, informing Keir Starmer just hours before he made it, with many of the finer details still to be ironed out. Related: New UK-US trade deal is a relief for Starmer but doubts, and tariffs, remain Under the terms of the agreement, for example, British car companies will be allowed to export 100,000 vehicles a year at a 10% tariff rate. But the deal does not set out how the Americans will view cars assembled in the UK with a considerable proportion of parts made in other countries, nor how parts themselves will be treated. While the details are being fleshed out, some British companies are being forced by their American customers to reduce their prices, while others say they are simply not exporting at all. Earlier this week, a federal court ruled many of Trump's tariffs were illegal, and that he should first have sought the approval of Congress. But while that ruling applied to the 10% rate Trump has applied to products from across the world, it did not apply to the higher 25% rate he has imposed on cars, steel and aluminium. Downing Street has decided to continue negotiating with the US as if the court ruling did not apply, not least because British officials believe it is likely to be struck out by the supreme court, which is dominated by conservatives. On Friday night, Trump unexpectedly announced he would be doubling foreign tariffs on steel and aluminium imports to 50%. It was not immediately clear how the announcement would affect the trade agreement negotiated earlier this month that saw tariffs on UK steel and aluminium reduced to zero. Last week, a UK team landed in Washington, including the prime minister's business adviser, Varun Chandra, the business department's head of trade relations, Kate Joseph, and the deputy national security adviser, Jonathan Black. Michael Ellam, the senior Cabinet Office official who played a major role in getting the deal signed, is now concentrating on the EU reset deal, one source said. The team spent much of last week talking to Howard Lutnick, the US commerce secretary, Jamieson Greer, the US trade representative, and Brooke Rollins, the US agriculture secretary. Rollins has been pushing for the UK to open up to more US agricultural and food products, though Starmer has insisted he is not willing to reduce welfare and safety standards to do so. Officials are hoping car tariffs will be dropped in the next two weeks, while steel and aluminium ones could take a few weeks longer. They also believe the US will reduce tariffs on British-made aeroplane parts almost to zero, having promised to give the UK a 'significantly preferential outcome' when deciding tariffs on future products. Discussions about pharmaceutical products, which account for approximately £7bn worth of exports to the US, are still going on, however, given Trump has not yet said what tariffs he intends to impose on the sector. The talks with the US are continuing at the same time as officials get closer to a controversial £1.6bn trade deal with Gulf countries. The Guardian revealed on Friday that that deal contained no concrete provisions on human rights, modern slavery or the environment.
Evening Standard
a day ago
- Business
- Evening Standard
Trump announces new steel and aluminium tariffs in blow to global markets
However, a UK government source told Sky News that Britain will remain exempt from the new tariff rates, following the signing of a US-UK trade deal earlier this month. The source highlighted this agreement as evidence of why reaching an early arrangement with the Trump administration had been critical.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Everything We Know About The Chagos Islands Deal Between The UK And Mauritius
The United Kingdom has finalized a historic £3.4 billion agreement to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius. The deal allows the UK to secure a 99-year lease and maintain control of the strategically vital Diego Garcia military base. The BBC reports that Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced the deal on May 22, 2025. This ends decades of international legal disputes over the remote Indian Ocean archipelago. The controversial agreement will cost British taxpayers approximately £101 million annually. However, it ensures continued access to the joint US-UK military installation that Starmer describes as 'right at the foundation of our safety and security at home.' Mauritius Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam hailed the arrangement as completing 'the total process of decolonization.' At the same time, critics, including some displaced Chagossians, express concerns about their right to return to their ancestral lands. The agreement comes after years of mounting international pressure on Britain to relinquish control of the territory it separated from Mauritius in 1965, before Mauritian independence. The Chagos Islands are about 1,250 miles northeast of Mauritius and nearly 6,000 miles from the UK. The islands became a focal point of controversy when Britain forcibly removed approximately 2,000 islanders between the late 1960s and early 1970s. This deportation occurred to accommodate the construction of a US military base on Diego Garcia, the largest island in the archipelago. A leaked Foreign Office memo infamously referred to the Chagossians as 'a few Tarzans and Man Fridays,' highlighting the colonial attitudes that facilitated their displacement. Under the new agreement, the UK will pay Mauritius an average of £101 million annually for 99 years to lease Diego Garcia. The payment structure includes £165 million for each of the first three years. This is followed by £120 million annually for years four through thirteen, with subsequent payments indexed to inflation. The deal also establishes a £40 million trust fund to support Chagossian communities. The agreement creates a 24-mile exclusion zone around Diego Garcia where nothing can be built without UK consent. Foreign military and civilian forces are banned from other islands in the archipelago. There are also provisions to prevent Chinese influence in the region. Furthermore, the UK retains veto power over access to the islands. Starmer confirmed that all 'Five Eyes' security alliance partners, the US, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia, support the agreement. Meanwhile, Russia, China, and Iran oppose post Everything We Know About The Chagos Islands Deal Between The UK And Mauritius appeared first on Travel Noire.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Tariffs court fight threatens Trump's power to wield his favourite economic weapon
Since returning to power, US President Donald Trump has wielded tariffs – or the threat of them - as his economic weapon of choice. He has slapped import duties against allies and adversaries alike, and raised their rates to staggeringly high levels, only to change his mind and abruptly pause or reduce the charges. Markets and global leaders have scrambled trying to guess his next moves, while major retailers have warned of rising prices for American consumers and potentially empty shelves in shops. The president has claimed this power to impose tariffs unilaterally. He says that as president he is responding to a national economic emergency - and he cannot wait for Congress to pass legislation. In effect, this meant his finger was constantly poised on one of the most effective triggers of US economic policy. Firing off a threatening missive to a country playing hardball was as easy as posting on Truth Social (just ask the European Union, which he called "very difficult to deal with" in negotiations last week). However, late on Wednesday, the US Court of International Trade ruled that he had exceeded the authority of the emergency powers he was using. The court gave the White House 10 days to remove almost all tariffs, which it says have been imposed illegally. The White House appealed, and a federal appeals court has stayed the trade court's ruling, which means that those tariffs will stay in place - for now. The administration argued in its appeal that a ruling against Trump "would kneecap the president on the world stage, cripple his ability to negotiate trade deals, imperil the government's ability to respond to these and future national emergencies". On Thursday night, Trump was back on Truth Social, rebuking the lower court judges who had ruled against him, calling their decision "wrong" and "horrible". Trump tariffs can stay in place for now, appeals court rules What tariffs has Trump announced and why? Simon Jack: Tariff ruling doesn't really change US-UK deal Where does court ruling leave Trump's tariff agenda? Until now, the power to make or break the economy has rested on his shoulders, as the tariff rates levelled against other countries keep going up and down – seemingly according to Trump's mood. He raised the tariffs on imported Chinese goods all the way up to 145% before dropping them down to 30%. A few weeks later he used a social media post to threaten the EU with 50% tariffs, before backing down a couple of days later. Wall Street analysts have even reportedly now coined the phrase "Taco trade", referring to their belief that Trump Always Chickens Out from imposing steep import taxes. He looked furious when asked about the acronym in the Oval Office on Wednesday. "That's a nasty question" he said, arguing that it was only by making these threats that he got the EU to the negotiating table. Trump's ambassador to the EU during his first term, Gordon Sondland, told the BBC this so-called wishy-washy-ness was by design. "What Trump is doing is exactly what he would do as a business person. He would immediately find a point of leverage to get someone's attention today. Not next month, not next year... he wants to have these conversations now," he said earlier this week, before the latest legal twists. "How do you get someone as intransigent and as slow moving as the EU to do something now? You slap a 50% tariff on them and all of a sudden the phone start ringing." If Trump's tariffs plan continues to meet resistance in the courts, one option at his disposal is asking Congress to legislate the taxes instead. But that would eliminate one of his biggest tools - the element of surprise. For decades, Trump has been convinced that trade tariffs are the answer to many of America's economic problems. He has appeared to welcome the prospect of global trade war sparked by his tariff agenda, insisting that it is by raising the price of imported goods and reviving the US manufacturing sector that he will "Make America Great Again". Trump touts the money - billions of dollars, not trillions, as he says - that tariffs have already brought in to US government coffers. The president argues they will help to revive American manufacturing by persuading firms to move their factories to the US to avoid import duties. However, University of Michigan economics professor Justin Wolfers described Trump's methods as "madness". "If you believe in tariffs, what you want is for businesses to understand that the tariffs are going to... be permanent so that they can make investments around that and that's what would lead the factories to come to the United States," he told the BBC. He said that whatever happens with this court challenge, Trump has already transformed the global economic order. Prof Wolfers said while Trump "chickens out from the very worst mistakes" - citing his original 'Liberation Day' levies and the threat of 50% tariffs on the EU - he doesn't backflip on everything. The president wants to keep 10% reciprocal tariffs on most countries and 25% tariffs on cars, steel and aluminium. "Yes, he backs off the madness, but even the stuff he left in meant that we had the highest tariff rate yesterday than we'd had since 1934," Prof Wolfers said. All signs point to this being a fight that the Republican president won't give up easily. "You can assume that even if we lose, we will do it another way," Trump's trade advisor Peter Navarro said after Thursday's appeals court ruling. While the litigation plays out, America's trade partners will be left guessing about Trump's next move, which is exactly how he likes it. Trump tariffs case could head to Supreme Court as soon as Friday Faisal Islam: Tariff ruling completely changes the global trade war US trade court blocks Trump's sweeping tariffs. What happens now? Simon Jack: Tariff ruling doesn't really change US-UK deal
