UK business minister Reynolds to visit Washington for trade talks

By Andrea Shalal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -UK business minister Jonathan Reynolds will meet with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington on Tuesday to advance discussions on a bilateral trade agreement, the British embassy said.

Reynolds will discuss deeper UK-U.S. ties to benefit industry, business and consumers, building on discussions first launched by U.S. President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer during an Oval Office meeting last month, it said.

“The UK and U.S. share a fair and balanced relationship, one that has benefited both sides for many decades," Reynolds said in a statement, calling his visit the latest step in the UK's "pragmatic and positive engagement with the new administration  to agree a wider economic deal in both our interests.” 

Britain, unlike the European Union, did not immediately retaliate after Trump's 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports took effect March 12, hoping to negotiate a trade deal and stave off a broader round of reciprocal tariffs that Trump says he will announce on April 2.

Trump said last month the two countries might reach a bilateral trade deal that would avert duties.

Britain and the U.S. engaged in five rounds of trade negotiations toward such a deal during Trump's first term in office, but failed to reach an agreement before he left office. The work was shelved by his successor, former President Joe Biden.

Britain's ambassador to the U.S., Peter Mandelson, said the two allies hoped to set up a "full spectrum technology partnership" building on critical U.S.-UK collaboration on nuclear technologies during World War Two and joint work developing the internet.

In a commentary published on Monday in the Hill newspaper, Mandelson underscored the importance of continued collaboration - now on artificial intelligence - given today's intense rivalries with adversaries in that sector.

He mapped out potential partnerships in biotechnologies, including genomics, protein design and engineering, as well as joint work on advanced data centers, the world's first advanced quantum computer, and nuclear technology.

"The U.S. and UK are natural allies to work together to deliver generational advances," he said. "America and Britain can achieve more together than they can do apart."

Ryan Majerus, a former senior U.S. Commerce Department official now at law firm King & Spalding, said Britain has the potential to negotiate a separate trade deal with the United States.

“It does seem like those stars may align for some kind of a potential deal with the UK, whether it’s more immediate relief from the tariffs or a long-term trade agreement," he said.

The U.S. is Britain's single largest country trading partner, with more than $1.5 trillion invested in each other's economies across key sectors including financial services, energy and technology.  

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis and Jamie Freed)