British government pledges $20 billion to help exporters
LONDON
Freight lorries queue on the A20, as they wait to access the Port of Dover in Kent, southeast England, on April 11, 2025.
The U.K. has pledged 20 billion pounds ($26 billion) to help exporters including those affected by U.S. tariffs.
Britain's Finance Ministry said the move would expand the U.K.'s export finance package by 20 billion pounds to a total of 80 billion pounds, with "thousands of U.K. businesses affected by tariffs set to benefit."
Up to 10 billion pounds of that support will be used specifically for firms "impacted in the short term by the current situation," it said.
Finance Minister Rachel Reeves said the move would help companies weather difficulties ahead.
"The world is changing, which is why it is more important than ever to back our world-leading businesses and support them to navigate the challenges ahead," she said.
The finance ministry said small businesses will also be able to access loans of up to 2 million pounds as part of the package.
Analysts have warned that the 10 percent levy on U.S. imports of British goods could further weaken business and consumer sentiment in the U.K.
Specific industries such as auto, steel and aluminium face even steeper tariffs as high as 25 percent.
The United States is the U.K.'s single largest country trading partner, with over 1.2 trillion pounds invested in each other's economies.
It comes as the U.K. strives to broker a long-awaited post-Brexit trade deal with the United States.
Asked when it could be completed, Britain's Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds told Sky News on April 13 he could not give a timeline, saying that Trump was the "driving force and the decision maker... on the U.S. side."
