Unlock the White House View Newspaper FREE
Your guide to what Trump’s second term for Washington, business and the world mean
The United Kingdom Chancellor Rachel Reeves held her first official talks with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, with both finance ministers agreeing that there was a “landing area” for a bilateral trading agreement, according to British officials.
Reeves has opened the British door by cutting off its fees for US car imports, along with agricultural products and seafood, as it tries to persuade the Trump administration to cut its taxes on UK exports.
Bessent has been seen within Starmer government as a relatively beloved figure for tariffs, but there is an acknowledgment that trade decisions are finally taken at the Oval Office. The US has imposed a 10 percent initial fee on UK exports and a 25 percent tax on cars and steel.
UK officials said Reeves – who had not met Bessent before her journey to Washington this week – had developed a “good discussion” with her American counterpart.
One person informed about the talks said: “Both think there is a landing area for a trade agreement, but we are not there yet. The discussion has become more intense, so it is positive. The discussion will continue.”
The US Treasury did not immediately respond to a comment request.
Reeves, in Washington for World Bank Spring and IMF meetings, has been praised by some of the world’s financial elite for its commitment to free trade and side supply reforms.
Crystalline Georgieva, managing director of the IMF, said: “She is dealing with very difficult issues, receiving the reorigation of spending, making the regulatory environment more rational and then get the battle to make it. And it is really impressive.”
But Reeves is much less popular at home, with opinions of opinions showing that its appreciation of approval has declined in recent weeks.
Youugov reported this month that only 14 percent of respondents said they had a positive appearance of the Chancellor, with 62 percent having a negative look. The result of -48 represents the lowest estimation of the reeves still.
Reeves has asked this week to build relationships with the Trump administration by signaling that some of his concerns about the global trading system were well -based.
Speaking at an event at the British Embassy in Washington on Thursday night, Reeves argued that the US had the right to worry about excessive trade inequalities – highlighting the “challenges” associated with growing China’s economy as well as the benefits.
“The challenges that Donald Trump’s administration has spoken about for global trade inequalities are very true, and we have to address them,” she said in an event organized by the British ambassador to the US, Lord Peter Mandelson.
Reeves added that those trade inequalities were not always associated with “transparent policies”.
But she stressed in her meetings in Washington that the United Kingdom continued to believe in dialogue and multilateral institutions, not tariffs, emphasizing the undesiosity of trade wars.
