Coventry and Warwickshire businesses welcome trade deal with US

This is according to the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce after the UK became the first nation to sign a historic trade deal with the USA in Donald Trump’s second term as President.

Corin Crane, chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “There has been a lot of uncertainty, not only for businesses who trade in the US but also for those who trade in the UK and other parts of the world, so securing this deal is positive and will hopefully alleviate some of this.

“It is encouraging to see that the tariffs on UK steel and aluminium have been removed, and tariffs faced by the automotive industry have also been revised to 10 per cent for the first 100,000 cars exported to the US – something which will have a particularly positive impact for us in the Midlands and give the sector some much-needed clarity.

“But there is still work to be done to enhance the deal and free up trade conditions further.

“We have a strong, resilient economy, and as a Chamber, we will be doing everything we can to support businesses across Coventry and Warwickshire to navigate the new deal.

“Most importantly, this may give us some of the stability our local business community have been craving, as long as nothing changes, they can start to plan. Fingers crossed nothing changes!”

Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce, added: “This deal will be met with a huge sigh of relief by many British businesses.

“The reduction in the 25 per cent tariffs on most of our automotive exports and the removal of levies on steel and aluminium are the biggest wins.

“The news on aerospace, including jet engines is also good news, as is additional protection from tariffs on our pharmaceutical sector.

“But this must not be the end of the process; we must continue to push the argument for free and fair trade across all economic sectors and that tariffs are a lose-lose position.

“There is a high-level of co-dependency in our economic relationship, and it is in both our interests to continue building upon those strong foundations which have developed over decades.”