Economics

Starmer Wants US Deal Done in Two Weeks to Save British Steel

A worker prepares to wrap cold drawn stainless steel bars at a factory in Sheffield.Photographer: Dominic Lipinski/Bloomberg

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By Julian Harris

June 4, 2025 at 2:58 AM EDT

Updated on

June 4, 2025 at 9:09 AM EDT

Britain is hoping to complete a trade deal with the US in the next two weeks to avoid President Donald Trump’s vast new tariffs on steel, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Wednesday.

The UK was granted an exemption from America’s higher 50% levy on global steel imports that took effect overnight, while Starmer’s team negotiates the details of a tariff-relief deal announced in the Oval Office last month.