Britain's Commerce and Commerce Secretary Jonathan Reynolds will urge the Donald Trump administration to quickly reach a deal to lower taxes on British steel exports to zero, even as the U.S. president vows to double its global steel tariffs to 50%.
British officials acknowledged that there is still no "clearity" about the new 50% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports that Trump will hit the UK steel industry and its £400 million exports to the United States.
However, the outlook doesn't look good, with British officials acknowledging that "it usually takes several months to implement trade deals".
Trump and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer signed their non-binding trade agreement on May 8, but London is still awaiting a clear signal from Washington about when it will take effect.
Reynolds will meet with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on the brink of next week’s OECD meeting to conduct a “timeline” for the implementation of the so-called “economic boom agreement.”
Steamer calls it a major coup after the first deal with the U.S. since Trump began placing high tariffs.
A British official said: "The steel situation remains unclear.
Gareth Stace, director-general of the UK steel trade agency, warned that Trump's plan to double the steel and aluminum tariffs from 25% to 50% is a "physical blow."
“There is still uncertainty as to whether and when our second largest export market will open up our business or firmly close our faces,” he added.
Trump agreed on May 8 to reduce the 27.5% car tariffs on cars by 10% of the top 100,000 cars shipped from the UK, and Starmer said the deal would save work for Carmakers, including Jaguar Land Rover.
The Prime Minister also said at the time that the U.S. agreed to lower tariffs on UK steel and aluminum exports to zero, but currently 25%.
In return for cutting Trump’s tariffs, the UK granted the U.S. a larger market for beef, ethanol and industrial products. Neither proposed tariffs on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean have come into effect.
The UK government said: “We are working to ensure that businesses can benefit from the transaction as soon as possible and confirm the appropriate next step.
“The United States will need due process around them and we will work very closely with them so that this will happen as soon as possible in the coming weeks.
“The Economic Boom Agreement and any implementation legislation will be brought to Parliament in due course.”
Officials at the British Embassy in Washington are working with the U.S. Department of Commerce to try to speed up the formulation of the agreement. "In our opinion, the initial deal was." A British official said.
Trump's sectoral tariffs on automobiles and steel are not affected by the U.S. International Trade Court's ruling on Wednesday, the "Erection Day" tariff plan was illegal - a ruling was later suspended by the U.S. federal appeals court.
But trade experts warn that the U.S. president will now be distracted by his battle in court and is unlikely to focus on a trade deal with the UK.