The dominoes are starting to go down.
Thursday, the president took to his Truth Social account to announce a "full and comprehensive" trade deal with the United Kingdom.
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 8, 2025
The timing is fortuitous, coming as it does on the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe (V-E) Day, which saw the end of World War 2 in Europe.
The UK had recently struck a trade deal with its former colony, India.
The deal announced Thursday is the second for Britain in a week after it clinched a free trade pact with India.
But here's the bigger deal:
The news of a U.S.-U.K. trade deal comes as U.S. and Chinese officials prepare to hold talks in Switzerland on Saturday, which could mark the first step in resolving a potentially damaging trade war between the world's top two economies.
Initial indications are that the deal will include (almost certainly among other things) reducing American tariffs on British automobiles (be sure to remind your Range Rover-driving soccer mom neighbor) and British steel. The autos are one thing, and we have plenty of good American-made automobiles. Steel though, the UK is not, on the global scale, a major steel producer, having come in 26th among steel-producing nations in output in 2023, the most recent year for which figures are available. But steel is a major component of the British economy. And steel is a major global commodity; without steel, the global economy would very quickly grind to a halt. There would be no automobile production, no new commercial buildings, and no household appliances. Items ranging from hospital beds to electrical transmission pylons would be affected.
China is, at the moment, the #1 producer of steel. But China's steel is not held to the same production standards as American or British steel, and there have been many reports of quality problems. Ramping up American steel production, as President Trump has vowed to do, is a good idea - but it won't hurt to make a deal with Britain on steel, either.
The United Kingdom is the first major nation to make a new trade deal with the United States, but if the president's plan works, it sure won't be the last. Nations, like people, can be subject to preference cascades, and when one nation strikes a good trade deal with the largest economy in the world - the United States - others will be watching. India is reportedly coming to the table. As noted above, talks with China are starting, and China is under enormous pressure right now to make some kind of deal.
See Also: China Is Erupting in Protests After Tariff-Induced Factory Closures
We're still in the early stages of the Trump trade deal-making. A lot of things still need to be done, a lot of deals still need to be struck. Things could still go sideways. But these indications are good; we have a deal with the Brits, we are talking with China, and more nations are coming to the Trump administration wanting to talk. Talk leads to deals. Fair trade deals lead to prosperity for all parties.
As one famous Brit, who was half American, once said, this isn't the end. It isn't even the beginning of the end. But it may be the end of the beginning.
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