UK posts record drop in exports to US in April after tariffs

British exports of goods to the United States fell by a record £2 billion ($2.7 billion) in April following President Donald Trump’s tariffs onslaught, the Office for National Statistics said Thursday.

The data covers the period when a baseline 10-percent tariff was imposed on the UK and other countries by Trump at the start of April, along with sector-specific levies on cars, steel and aluminum.

The UK and US have since struck a trade deal cutting tariffs on British cars and scrapping them on steel and aluminum, while Britain agrees to open its markets to US beef and other farm goods.

Britain is still subject to the 10-percent tariff on most goods imported to the United States.

The data shows the largest monthly fall in trade with the United States since records began in 1997.

Decreases were seen “across most types of goods, following the recent introduction of tariffs,” said ONS director of economic statistics Liz McKeown.

Exports of machinery and transport equipment, including cars, took a notable hit in April, after four months of consecutive increases in the export of British goods to the US.

Trade in goods between the UK and US remained balanced in 2024, according to ONS data.

Britain imported £57.1 billion ($77 billion) worth of US goods last year and exported a total of £59.3 billion.