UK calls Trump tariffs disappointing but doesn’t retaliate

LONDON — The British government on Wednesday called the Trump administration’s tariffs on global steel and aluminum imports “disappointing,” but said that it won’t impose retaliatory measures.

Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, however, did not rule out future tariffs on U.S. imports and said he would “continue to engage closely and productively with the U.S. to press the case for U.K. business interests.”

“We will keep all options on the table and won’t hesitate to respond in the national interest,” Reynolds said.

Treasury Minister James Murray echoed that, telling Times Radio: “We reserve our right to retaliate.”

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Britain is not part of the European Union, which Wednesday announced import taxes on American goods, ranging from steel and aluminum to bourbon, peanut butter and jeans in response to Trump’s move.

Center-left U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has worked to build strong ties with President Donald Trump, in hope of avoiding the tariffs levied on many other U.S. trading partners.

After a meeting last month at the White House, Trump and Starmer said their governments would work on sealing a long-elusive U.S.-U.K. trade deal.

Reynolds said the government remains “focused on a pragmatic approach and are rapidly negotiating a wider economic agreement with the U.S. to eliminate additional tariffs and to benefit U.K. businesses and our economy.”

The tariffs are a new blow for Britain’s once-mighty steel industry, which has shrunk dramatically from its 1970s peak and now accounts for 0.1% of the economy. Thousands of jobs are due to be lost at the country’s biggest steelworks, at Port Talbot in Wales, as owner Tata Steel tries to make the unprofitable plant leaner and greener.

Trade body UK Steel said that in 2024, Britain exported 180,000 metric tons (198,000 U.S. tons) of steel to the United States, about 7% of the U.K.’s total steel exports by volume and 9% by value. The aluminum industry says the U.S. market accounts for 10% of U.K. exports.