‘America is OPEN FOR BUSINESS’, President Donald Trump shared on Truth Social, just as the details of the US-UK trade deal were coming to light. It was an important clarification. Not only did the substantial tariffs announced on ‘Liberation Day’ suggest, strongly, that this might not be the case, but the President’s rhetoric since then has ranged from ultra-protectionist to free-trade enthusiast.
‘I’m just saying [children] don’t need to have 30 dolls. They can have three,’ Trump told NBC just days ago, when asked about the prospect of empty shelves and higher prices. ‘They don’t need to have 250 pencils. They can have five.’ The comments came at the same time the administration was hinting that a free trade agreement with India was about to be signed.
Britain, however, beat all other countries to it, becoming the first example of America being open for business – on Trump’s terms, of course. The deal is not a comprehensive FTA: it focuses on key industries, including steel, aluminium, agriculture and automotives.
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