Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on June 4, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleUK PM Starmer is confident that the US tariff deal will be implemented soon, avoiding a 50% levy on British steel imports.
By Alistair Smout
LONDON (Reuters) -British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Wednesday he was confident that tariffs on U.S. imports of British steel would be reduced to zero within a "couple of weeks", avoiding a July deadline which could see the levies jump to 50%.
Starmer and U.S. President Donald Trump last month agreed a tariff relief deal that cuts levies on steel, aluminium and car imports to the United States, in return for tariff reductions on beef and ethanol, but it has yet to be implemented.
On Tuesday Britain avoided a 50% tariff introduced by Trump on steel imports to the U.S., with the tariff staying at the current 25% pending the implementation of the bilateral deal.
But Trump's proclamation contained a provision that British steel imports could be subject to the 50% tariff from July 9 if the yet-to-be implemented deal has not been complied with.
Asked if Trump was changing the terms of the previously agreed deal and threatening Britain with a new deadline, Starmer expressed confidence that the deal would be implemented quickly.
"We have a deal, and we're implementing it, and within a very short time, I'm very confident we will get those tariffs down in accordance with the deal," Starmer told lawmakers.
"Let's come back to this in just a couple of weeks when we've implemented it."
British trade minister Jonathan Reynolds met U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on Tuesday, shortly before Trump's proclamation. They agreed to work to implement sectoral tariff reductions under the deal as soon as possible.
Industry body UK Steel said Reynolds had acted swiftly to ensure stability in steel trade by avoiding the 50% tariff, but said ongoing uncertainty about timings could put U.S. customers off making orders from Britain.
"The U.S. and UK must urgently turn the May deal into reality to remove the tariffs completely," said Gareth Stace, UK Steel's Director-General.
(Reporting by Alistair Smout and Muvija MEditing by Gareth Jones)
Starmer expressed confidence that the tariffs on U.S. imports of British steel would be reduced to zero within a 'couple of weeks', ensuring compliance with the bilateral deal.
The previous tariff on British steel imports to the U.S. was 50%, but it has been reduced to 25% pending the implementation of the new deal.
British trade minister Jonathan Reynolds met with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer to discuss the implementation of sectoral tariff reductions.
UK Steel indicated that while the swift action by Reynolds was positive, ongoing uncertainty about the timing of the deal could deter U.S. customers from placing orders.
The tariff deal is crucial for the UK steel industry as it aims to eliminate tariffs completely, which would stabilize trade and encourage U.S. imports of British steel.
Explore more articles in the Headlines category
