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Negotiations between the British and the EU on a free trade agreement have reached a dead end, those in Japan were a success. 99% of British exports to Japan should be duty free by 2021.
According to official information from London, Great Britain and Japan have agreed a trade agreement. It was the UK’s first major deal as an “independent trading nation”, announced the responsible British ministry. It should apply from January 1, 2021 and ensure that 99 percent of UK exports to Japan are duty free.
The agreement with Japan is an agreement in principle, concluded via videoconference and has not yet been signed. It is based on the trade agreement between the EU and Japan that came into force last year but no longer applies to the UK.
Ministry: It goes “far” beyond the EU agreements
Trade with Japan could grow by about 15.2 billion pounds (about 16.5 billion euros) annually with the deal, he said. The digital and data deals went “far” beyond the provisions of the EU’s trade agreement with Japan and supported British fintech companies operating in the Asian country, the ministry said.
Both Japan and Great Britain are among the largest economies in the world. In the course of difficult Brexit negotiations, the deal is therefore of great importance for Britain, both economically and politically.
Negotiations with the EU at a dead end
Britain left the EU on January 31 and a transitional agreement will run until the end of the year. Negotiations between the British government and the EU on a free trade agreement after the end of this transitional phase are currently at a dead end.
The British government surprisingly announced this week that it would unilaterally change the Brexit treaty that was passed in January. Prime Minister Boris Johnson was heavily criticized for this by the EU, the EU states and also from the ranks of the British ruling party.
