Trump to announce trade deal with UK on Thursday: US media

WASHINGTON: Donald Trump will announce a trade deal with the United Kingdom on Thursday, US media reported, after the president touted a “major” upcoming agreement on social media.

The New York Times and Politico reported that Trump was set to agree to a deal with Britain, citing multiple people familiar with the plans.

Trump wrote earlier on Wednesday the “major trade deal” would be announced with a “big, and highly respected country.”

He said he would announce the deal at a 10:00 am (1400 GMT) news conference in the Oval Office at the White House and touted it as the “first of many.”

Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on US trading partners last month but temporarily froze most of them to allow for the negotiation of trade deals.

He has been claiming for weeks that countries were lining up to strike trade agreements with the United States.

The Times said it was not clear whether a US trade deal with Britain had been finalized or if the two countries would announce a framework for an agreement that would be subject to further negotiation.

The Bank of England is widely expected to cut its key interest rate by a quarter point Thursday as Trump’s planned tariffs threaten to weaken global economic growth.

An affinity for Britain

Britain this week struck a free-trade agreement with India, its biggest such deal since leaving the European Union, after negotiations relaunched in February following US tariff threats.

Britain has sought to bolster trade ties across the world since it left the EU at the start of the decade under Brexit, a need that became more pressing after Trump took power.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer visited Washington at the end of February in part to discuss tariffs and came away hopeful that a long-awaited accord could be reached.

Trump at the time held out the prospect of a “great” deal, hailing Starmer as a tough negotiator.

Starmer during his visit handed Trump an invitation to meet King Charles III in September for an unprecedented second state visit that London hopes will boost transatlantic ties.

Trump will become the first political leader to receive a second state visit to Britain, after he traveled there in 2019 during his first term as president.

The 78-year-old Republican has long been a vocal fan of the British royal family.

He also has a close affinity to the UK due to the fact his mother was born in Scotland, where he owns a golf course.