Summary

  • Donald Trump removes the 25% tariff on UK steel and aluminium, and immediately cuts the rate on most car exports from 27.5% to 10%

  • The lower car rate applies to the first 100,000 vehicles exported from the UK to the US each year - 101,000 were exported last year

  • In return, the UK government says it's removing the tariff on ethanol for US goods, and agrees "reciprocal market access on beef"

  • UK PM Keir Starmer called it a "fantastic, historic" day, as he joined the Oval Office news conference via phone

  • For Trump, this is a much-needed "win" on tariffs - and he sounds triumphant, our reporter in the White House says

  • The 10% tariff, announced on Trump's "Liberation Day" last month, still applies to most other UK goods entering the US

  • Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch says the UK has been "shafted"

UK-US trade deal will create jobs - Starmer

Live Reporting

Edited by Caitlin Wilson in Washington DC, with Tom Bateman reporting from the Oval Office

  1. A busy week for UK trade negotiators...

    Split image with UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer on the left and India's Prime Minister on the right Narendra ModiGetty/Reuters

    Today’s expected announcement comes just days after the UK and India announced a trade deal.

    That deal will make it easier for UK firms to export whisky, cars and other products to India, and will cut taxes on India’s clothing and footwear exports.

    Some Indian and British workers will also gain from a three-year exemption from social security payments, which the Indian government called "an unprecedented achievement".

    The exemption applies to the staff of Indian companies temporarily transferred to the UK, and to UK firms' workers transferred to India.

    Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the deal would boost the economy and "deliver for British people and business".

    India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, described the agreement as an historic milestone that was "ambitious and mutually beneficial".

  2. Big difference between trade deal and trade agreement, says economist

    A former member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee says people shouldn't expect too much today - as Donald Trump talked of a "trade deal" instead of a "trade agreement".

    "There's a big difference between a trade deal and a trade agreement," Jonathan Haskel tells BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

    "Trade deals are limited and short-term and partial, just covering a few items. Trade agreements are broad-based and long-term."

    He says the deal could just be a commitment to a "short-term change of policy" - for example, a pause in certain tariffs.

  3. Analysis

    For all the fanfare, this is not a traditional free trade deal

    Dharshini David
    Deputy economics editor

    For all the fanfare from the American president, and the relief it may bring some sectors, this is far from what we have traditionally thought of as a trade deal.

    Rather it will be a carve-out - some exemptions for the UK from the trade barriers that President Trump has imposed in recent weeks.

    We expect there to be focus on reducing the extra tariffs areas such as the car industry and steelmakers face, and also perhaps on avoiding penalties for the pharmaceutical areas.

    All of these are key areas of exports for the UK when selling to America, but they are not the only ones.

    The universal 10% tariff on other items is likely to remain. This is a far cry from the kind of deal that that was being negotiated under the president’s first term.

    Moreover, what is announced today is only the framework of terms of this narrow agreement, and there’ll be much work to be done on negotiations and the legal paperwork in the coming months.

    But some areas remain off the table - including food standards.

  4. What tariffs are currently in place?

    Donald Trump has announced - and scaled back - a swathe of tariffs on countries around the world this year.

    Currently, most goods imported from the UK to the US face a blanket 10% tariff.

    The UK - like other countries - has also been hit with 25% tariffs on steel and aluminium exports to the US as well as a 25% tariff on cars and car parts.

    The UK also charges tariffs on goods from the US and elsewhere - we'll have more details on that it later posts.

  5. This is likely to be a limited, specific deal

    Henry Zeffman
    Chief political correspondent

    Though Donald Trump used the language of a "trade deal", this is likely to be more limited than that - a more specific deal to reduce tariffs on specific things.

    From the the British side, they specifically want to reduce tariffs on British steel and cars.

    From the US side, they want something on pharmaceuticals and technology.

  6. US and UK expected to announce deal
    Breaking

    Henry Zeffman
    Chief political correspondent

    The US and the UK are expected to announce a deal to reduce tariffs today.

    The UK government has been seeking a deal to lower tariffs since President Trump imposed tariffs on almost every country in the world last month.

    President Trump appeared to allude to the agreement when he posted on social media on Wednesday night: “Big News Conference tomorrow morning at 10:00 A.M., The Oval Office, concerning a MAJOR TRADE DEAL WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF A BIG, AND HIGHLY RESPECTED, COUNTRY. THE FIRST OF MANY!!!”