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U.S. President Donald Trump’s second state visit to the U.K. — and business deals already announced ahead of the trip — are not only a coup for the beleaguered British government but a much-needed confidence boost.
BlackRock , Alphabet and Blackstone are just some of the companies set to ink deals with the U.K., setting in motion multi-billion dollar investments in U.K. assets. A raft of energy deals have also been announced, with the U.K. heralding a “golden age” in new energy partnerships, including in nuclear power.
These investments will not only create jobs, growth and deeper cooperation between the allies, the U.K. hopes, but will be promoted as a vote of confidence in the country.
London desperately needs that at a time when British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his ministers have been accused of harming business sentiment and investment with recent tax rises.
But the U.K. has high hopes it can achieve even more from Trump’s state visit as it rolls out the red carpet for the president and first lady Melania.
CNBC takes a look at three key things that Starmer will want from Trump’s trip.
Trade deal ‘incomplete’
The U.K. makes much of its “special relationship” with the U.S. and could barely contain its pleasure at being the first country to sign a trade deal, or “economic prosperity deal” with the White House in May, particularly given the struggles its global allies were having in their own trade negotiations with Trump.
The U.K. government’s ability to get on the right side of the president was evident with the baseline 10% tariff it was given, with the deal also including a 25% duty on steel and aluminum exports to the States while the rest of the world suffered a 50% levy.
As Trump and Starmer meet, with discussions set to take place at the prime minister’s countryside residence Chequers on Thursday, talks will undoubtedly touch upon making “commitments” in the trade deal a reality.
Speaking to reporters as he boarded Air Force One on Tuesday, Trump said he was “into helping” the U.K. finesse the countries’ trade deal.
“They want to see if they can refine the trade deal a little bit,” he said “We’ve made a deal, and it’s a great deal, and I’m into helping them,” he said, adding: “They’d like to see if they could get a little bit better deal. So, we’ll talk to them.”
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Anthony Gardner, former U.S. Ambassador to the EU under President Barack Obama, told CNBC that the state visit was an opportunity to finalize those initial agreements.
“Britain is a great place to invest, they are going to be a lot of announcements about investments, not only by financial firms, but otherwise, in the U.K.,” Gardner told CNBC’s “Europe Early Edition” on Tuesday.
“But I think a second, key objective here is to move ahead on the recent U.S.-U.K. trade deal, which remains incomplete. It’s not yet a real deal, and there’s still some important parts of that deal which remain to be filled in,” Gardner said.
Zero steel and aluminum tariffs
One of the key sticking points in the trade deal is over steel and aluminum tariffs, with the U.K. eager to see those 25% duties reduced to zero, as promised in the original trade deal blueprint.
That’s a moot point for the Labour government as it looks to save jobs in the precarious steel industry in Britain, which has seen several steel plants close in recent year, or come under threat.
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The U.S. accounts for 7% of the U.K.’s total steel exports, with the trade worth £370 million ($505 million), in 2024, according to UK Steel. Industry leaders in the U.K. say most steel products that are exported to the States are of a specialist, high-value nature, and are not undercutting U.S. domestic market.
The U.K.’s hopes might well be dashed. On Wednesday, the BBC reported that a proposed deal to eliminate tariffs on UK steel exports appeared to have been put on hold indefinitely.
Confidence boost
The British government will certainly be looking for a confidence boost from Trump’s visit, with business deals a major element of that much needed uplift to sagging morale both among the Labour leadership and business community.
The U.K. government is facing mounting challenges on the home front, with Starmer’s leadership under pressure. In the last fortnight alone, Starmer’s Deputy Prime Minister and close ally Angela Rayner has resigned after a house tax scandal, triggering a major cabinet reshuffle.
Then, Starmer sacked the U.K.’s Ambassador to the U.S. Peter Mandelson over his links to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, with the prime minister’s judgment and integrity called into question by his initial appointment of Mandelson. Starmer said he was not fully aware of the depth of Mandelson’s friendship with Epstein at the time he was given the ambassadorial post.
“This comes at a very opportune moment for both leaders and for both countries where they will be hoping for this bonhomie, this unity projection that they’re going to have,” Lindsay Newman, geopolitical risk expert and columnist at GZERO, told CNBC on Tuesday.
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“There are many deals that have been previewed, there is business that will be had, but this is really about shifting the narrative for these countries and saying: ‘Hey, we are here, the Transatlantic partnership, the ‘special relationship’ still exists, it’s still quite vibrant, and we’re going to be global players,'” she added.
U.S. Trade Secretary Scott Bessent was upbeat ahead of the state visit, telling CNBC that the president was looking forward to being the guest of King Charles III in Windsor on Wednesday.
“He is the only leader ever to be given two state visits, it’s going to be a fantastic day tomorrow … it’s going to be an incredible few days,” Bessent told CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”