President Donald Trump on Thursday announced the first deal reached since Trump announced tariffs on America’s trading partners.
“The agreement with the United Kingdom is a full and comprehensive one that will cement the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom for many years to come,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“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.
Trump later wrote, “This should be a very big and exciting day for the United States of America and the United Kingdom.”
Details were not announced.
A report in The New York Times noted that the U.S. was seeking lower tariffs on cars and farm goods and the removal of British taxes on American technology companies.
Britain has been urging Trump to lift a 25 percent tariff on steel, aluminum and automobiles.
The Times report said Trump administration deals with India and Israel are near, while talks with South Korea, Japan, Vietnam and other countries are ongoing.
“Everyone says, ‘When, when, when are you going to sign deals?’” Trump said Tuesday as he spoke to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
Will Trump’s tariff strategy be successful?
“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,” Trump said.
Fox Business noted that prior to April, British goods imported to the United States faced tariffs no higher than 2.5 percent.
Britain’s Department of Business and Trade said it would not comment on “speculation,” according to NBC.
“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,” a representative of Prime Minister Keir Starmer said.
One commentator said the deals might not be fully cooked quite yet.
“This announcement is likely just an agreement to start the negotiations, identifying a framework of issues to be discussed in the coming months,” international trade attorney Tim Brightbill said, according to the Wall Street Journal.
“We suspect that tariff rates, non-tariff barriers, and digital trade are all on the list — and there are difficult issues to address on all of these.”
On Wednesday, Vice President J.D. Vance said talks are under way with “most nations.”
“We just want a little bit more fairness, or to use the president’s word, reciprocity,” he said Wednesday.
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