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British goods exports to the US have not recovered from President Donald Trump’s introduction of tariffs in April 2025, which left Britain in an unusual trade deficit with its biggest trading partner.
UK goods exports to the US averaged £4.7 billion per month between April 2025 and February 2026, compared to a monthly average of £5.5 billion in 2024. an analysis of the impact of US tariffs published by the Office for National Statistics on Friday.
The ONS noted that goods exports to the US fell by £1.5 billion, or 25 per cent, in April 2025, after the introduction of tariffs on US imports, and “have remained relatively low since then”.
The figures, which exclude volatile precious metals, also show that car exports to the US have remained below pre-tariff levels since April 2025.
As a result, Britain has had an unusual trade deficit with the US for three months in a row since December.
Trump has imposed a series of tariffs on imports of goods into the US since taking office in January 2025. On April 2, 2025, which Trump described as “liberation day,” most imports from Britain were subject to an overall tariff of 10 percent, apart from imports of steel and aluminum, and cars and auto parts, which were subject to a previously announced 25 percent tariff in March 2025.
However, on May 8, 2025, Britain and the US announced the ‘economic prosperity deal’, which included cutting tariffs on car imports to 10 percent on the first 100,000 British car exports to the US per quarter.
The ONS data showed that lower exports of machinery and transport equipment, especially car exports, were the main driver of the overall decline in goods exports to the US.
Exports of chemicals have also fallen since the introduction of tariffs, mainly due to a decline in exports of medicines and pharmaceuticals.
Fhaheen Khan, economist at manufacturing trade body Make UK, said: “Even the strongest relationships have their limits, and it is clear that UK manufacturers are willing to turn away from the US and look for growth opportunities elsewhere.”
Trump said on Thursday he would lift all tariffs and restrictions on Scotch whiskey imports in honor of King Charles and Queen Camilla’s state visit to the US.
Sophie Hale, economist at the Resolution Foundation think tank, said: “The latest ONS data confirms that tariffs have caused a worrying drop in the amount UK companies sell to the US.”
The suspension of tariffs on Scotch whiskey will be welcomed by an industry that has also seen exports to the US fall. But with whiskey making up a very small part of Britain’s trade with the US, “this will not change the worrying picture of lower trade with our largest exporting country”, Hale said.
At the end of February this year, one in three companies with 10 or more employees that had exported goods in the past 12 months reported being hit by US tariffs, with 18.7 percent reporting additional costs, according to the ONS’ bimonthly survey of businesses.
The US is still Britain’s main trading partner for goods exports, but the share of goods crossing the Atlantic fell to 14.9 percent between April 2025 and February 2026, from 17.2 percent in 2024. The share of British goods exports to Hong Kong and Germany rose by 0.8 percentage points and 0.6 percentage points respectively.
“These trends could indicate a change in the direction of trade flows for UK goods exports since the introduction of tariffs,” the ONS said.
