Starmer vows to act in UK’s interest

“After Brexit, you’ve reaffirmed your independence, and I think that is being proven today by the special rate that has been afforded to the UK,” he told BBC’s Newsnight.

He added that there was “nothing to say that the current rate … could not improve. It is the beginning.”

Sir Keir Starmer will try to reassure British businesses at a meeting in Downing Street this morning.

The prime minister can breathe a sigh of relief that British goods were hit with a 10 per cent tariff, lower than the 20 per cent levy imposed on EU exports.

Trump appears to have applied a sweeping formula: dividing the US trade deficit with a country by the imports from that country. Then, Trump halved the number produced because he was being “kind”. For those countries with a trade surplus, he simply imposed a 10 per cent tariff.

Given the blanket approach adopted by Trump, it appears that Britain was treated no differently from the rest of the world and the real test of Starmer’s diplomacy will come in the weeks ahead.

Britain is trying to negotiate a bespoke trade deal with the US, focussing on technology and AI.

Starmer could also offer to lower tariffs on US beef, chicken and other meat— without changing standards to allow imports of hormone-treated beef and chlorine-washed chicken. In exchange, he will hope that Trump drops the tariffs on British goods.

The business secretary said the 10 per cent tariff on the UK is “not a fair reflection” of our trade.

Jonathan Reynolds told BBC Breakfast that the average tariff the UK has in place on US goods is “about 4 per cent”.

But Reynolds also acknowledged that the US “have an argument that there are other barriers to trade”.

“For example we have a food standards regime in the UK which they have some objections to,” he noted.

However, he added that the two countries have a “strong trading relationship” which is “fair and balanced”.

The French government spokeswoman, Sophie Primas, said this morning that France would continue to try to negotiate with Washington “because we are not the ones who started this commercial war”.

“There will first be discussion and then the riposte,” Primas, a government minister, told RTL radio. “With President Trump, you have to get into a trial of strength”

Just before the announcements of the tariffs, President Macron said he hoped Trump would reverse his decisions, which were “not a good idea politically or geopolitically”.

“There’s a paradox in the main allies of the United States becoming the first ones to be taxed,” he added.

Sir Keir Starmer vowed to “fight for the best deal for Britain”.

Addressing business chiefs including AstraZeneca’s Pascal Soriot, BAE’s Charles Woodburn and Jaguar Land Rover’s Richard Molyneux, he repeated that “nobody wins in a trade war” and negotiations on an economic deal continue.

“Our intention remains to secure a deal, but nothing is off the table,” he said.

“We have a range of levers at our disposal and we will continue our work with businesses across the country to discuss their assessment of the options.”

The business secretary said being an open trading nation is “really important to our prosperity”.

He told Sky News: “America is a friend, America is our principal ally. We might not agree and don’t agree with all of these decisions but you’ve got to understand where they’re coming from and when you have that you have the basis for a constructive conversation that will get the best for the UK.”

President Macron has called an emergency meeting of business leaders at the Élysée Palace to assess the damage to France from the tariffs President Trump has slapped on Europe.

Paris is pushing for a robust riposte from Brussels to tariffs that will hit French drink and agricultural exports hard as well as industrial goods. Sales of French wine and spirits in the United States are expected to drop by at least 20 per cent.

Sophie Primas, the government spokeswoman, said Trump’s tariffs
would lead to “major economic disorder not only in Europe but also in the United States”.

Le Parisien newspaper said the imposition of tariffs did not mark Liberation Day, as Trump called it, but more The Day After, the disaster film about the destruction of the world in a US-Soviet nuclear war. “April 2, 2025, will go down as the day that a stroke of the hand by the most powerful man in the world swept away the world economic order as we have known it since the end of the Second World War.”

Todd McClay, New Zealand’s trade minister, has struck an optimistic note as he said the new 10 per cent tariff it was facing meant its exports remain competitive in the US market, compared with nations hit by higher tariffs.

McClay said it was important to note many countries were facing much higher tariff rates than New Zealand, which is a large exporter of lean beef used in US hamburgers.

“It’s very clear that the US, although they’re putting a tariff rate in place, has viewed New Zealand and our trading relationship as well balanced”, he said.

Tariffs are “not good for trade” and were likely to impact inflation, demand, and some currency rates, the minister added.

“We’ll be working very closely to our exporters during the course of today to get as much information as we can so that we can be well prepared in that market.”

Stock markets and the dollar fell in overnight trading, with investors switching to safe havens. The pound rose against the dollar to $1.307 and Japan’s yen strengthened as foreign exchange traders looked for safety outside the dollar. Safe-haven buying pushed gold to a high above $3,160 an ounce at one stage before the price eased back to $3,132.35.

Japan’s Nikkei lost 3 per cent, with shippers, banks, insurers and exporters leading the sell-off. Shares fell in South Korea and Australia. The FTSE 100 is forecast to open 1.7 per cent lower and Germany’s Dax down 2 per cent.

Apple, which makes iPhones in China, had $240 billion wiped off its market value as its shares fell 7 per cent in after-hours trading. Nvidia, which manufactures chips in Taiwan, fell by 5.6 per cent, or $153 billion. Imports from China face tariffs of 34 per cent and 32 per cent from Taiwan.

There will be an economic impact from President Trump’s actions last night, the prime minister has said.

Sir Keir Starmer told business chiefs in Downing Street: “Last night the president of the United States acted for his country, and that is his mandate. Today, I will act in Britain’s interests with mine.”

“Clearly, there will be an economic impact from the decisions the US has taken, both here and globally,” he admitted.

“But I want to be crystal clear: we are prepared, indeed one of the great strengths of this nation is our ability to keep a cool head.”

Starmer promised that he would only strike a deal with the US “if it is in our national interest and if it is the right thing to do for the security of working people, protects the pound in their pocket that they have worked hard to earn”.

China urged the United States to immediately cancel its latest tariffs and vowed countermeasures to safeguard its own interests, after the country appeared to be facing a cumulative 54 per cent surcharge on its exports into the US.

On Wednesday Trump announced China would be hit with a 34 per cent tariff, on top of the 20 per cent he imposed earlier this year, bringing the total close to the 60 per cent figure the US president had threatened while on the campaign trail.

The Chinese commerce ministry said in a statement that Trump’s move to impose sweeping tariffs disregards the balance of interests reached in multilateral trade negotiations and negated the benefits of international trade.

“China firmly opposes this and will take countermeasures to safeguard its own rights and interests,” the ministry said.

Economists have warned that a trade war between the two largest economies could seriously affect global supply chains.

The business secretary said the UK has “modelled every scenario” for the impact of tariffs but it is “not just about the relationship between the UK and the US, but what is going on in the rest of the world”.

A timeline for the UK to seal an economic deal to mitigate tariffs is “largely in the gift of the US”, he said.

Reynolds said: “We have every scenario you could imagine planned for but we also have a plan in place to stay calm, to talk to the US, to continue our work, to make sure that we are getting the best for the UK and working with all friends and allies as a way through this, rather than let the rhetoric overcome us, let the siren calls to make this even worse be listened to.”

US tariffs on the UK are a “disappointment” and “a challenge”, the business secretary has said.

Jonathan Reynolds told Times Radio: “Any barrier to trade, particularly between the UK and our major trading partner, which the US is, is a disappointment to me. It’s a challenge.

“So, I recognise that the UK is in a better position than a lot of other countries from what was announced last night, but I was still disappointed.”

Volkswagen is planning to introduce an “import fee” on vehicles affected by the 25 per cent tariffs imposed by the US on cars made outside the US, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The German carmaker has temporarily halted rail shipments of vehicles from Mexico and will hold cars arriving by ship from Europe at ports, the report said, citing a memo to retailers.

Trump’s 25 per cent tariffs on the global automotive industry will cover more than $460 billion worth of imports of vehicles and auto parts imports annually, according to Reuters.

Volkswagen told its dealers that it would give more details by mid-April on pricing strategies for tariff-affected cars, and plans to begin allocating those vehicles to stores by the end of the month, the WSJ report said. “We want to be very transparent about navigating through this time of uncertainty,” Volkswagen told the Journal.

Meloni: “We will do all we can to reach a deal with the US”

LAPRESSE/ALAMY

In Rome, Giorgia Meloni condemned Trump’s 20 per cent tariffs on European imports.

“The introduction by the US of tariffs against the EU is a measure I consider mistaken and of no benefit to either side,” the Italian prime minister posted on Facebook after Trump’s White House press conference.

“We will do all we can to reach a deal with the US with the aim of avoiding a commercial war that would inevitably weaken the West and favour other global actors,” she added.

The Spanish leader, Pedro Sánchez, said: “Spain will protect its companies and workers and will continue to be committed to an open world.”

Japan also described the tariffs as “extremely regrettable”, adding that they they may break World Trade Organisation rules and the bilateral trade agreement between the two countries.

“I have conveyed that the unilateral tariff measures taken by the United States are extremely regrettable, and I have again strongly urged [Washington] not to apply them to Japan,” Yoji Muto, the trade and industry minister, told reporters.

The list of tariffs announced by Trump

MARK SCHIEFELBEIN/AP

Muto said he had explained to the US commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, “how the US tariffs would adversely affect the US economy by undermining the capacity of Japanese companies to invest” before Trump’s announcement of a new 10 per cent baseline tariff and extra levies on selected countries, including Japan.

The government spokesman, Yoshimasa Hayashi, added: “We have serious concerns as to consistency with the WTO agreement and Japan-US trade agreement.”

South Korea’s acting President, Han Duck-soo, called for talks with US officials to shield its export-reliant economy from the impact of US tariffs and ordered emergency support measures for businesses.

Trump said South Korean exports into the US would be subject to a 25 per cent tariff rate.

President Han asked the industry minister to analyse the content of the tariffs and actively negotiate with Washington to minimise the impact.

“As the global trade war has become a reality, the government must pour all its capabilities to overcome the trade crisis,” Han said at a meeting with the finance minister and other top officials.

Ahn Duk-geun, the industry minister, called the new tariffs “regrettable”.

Anthony Albanese, Australia’s prime minister, said on Thursday the decision by Donald Trump to impose a 10 per cent tariff on its ally was “not the act of a friend”.

“It is the American people who will pay the biggest price for these unjustified tariffs,” he added. “This is why our government will not be seeking to impose reciprocal tariffs. We will not join a race to the bottom that leads to higher prices and slower growth.”

However he ruled out reciprocal tariffs against the United States.

In comments outside the White House, Trump singled out Australian beef, which recorded a surge in exports to the United States last year, reaching A$4 billion amid a slump in US beef production.

Albanese said Trump had not banned Australia beef, but had imposed a 10 per cent duty on all Australian goods entering the United States, despite US goods entering Australia tariff free.

“The [Trump] administration’s tariffs have no basis in logic and they go against the basis of our two nations’ partnership. This is not the act of a friend,” Albanese told reporters.

World leaders have mainly reacted with anger and warnings of countermeasures after Donald Trump’s announcement of global reciprocal tariffs.

Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, described Trump‘s universal tariffs as a major blow to the world economy and said the European Union was preparing to respond.

“We are already finalising the first package of countermeasures in response to tariffs on steel,” she said in a statement read out in the Uzbek city of Samarkand on Thursday, before an EU-Central Asia partnership summit.

“And we’re now preparing for further countermeasures to protect our interests and our businesses if negotiations fail.”

Von der Leyen said she deeply regretted the US move and warned of “immense consequences” for the global economy.

The EU plans to impose tariffs on up to €26 billion euros ($28.4 billion) of US goods this month in response to US steel and aluminium tariffs that took effect on March 12.