UK and GCC strike landmark trade deal

Britain said on Wednesday it had secured a trade deal with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) worth $5 billion a year in the long run.

The deal with the GCC, which consists of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, comes after US-Israeli strikes against Iran in February triggering Iranian attacks on other countries in the region, putting strain on energy and food supplies.

"The Gulf states are valued economic partners and this agreement deepens that relationship, building trust and unlocking new possibilities for trade and investment," said British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

The British government said the deal would be worth £3.7 billion (AED 18.21 billion) each year in the long term, more than double a previous estimate that it would be worth £1.6 billion (AED 7.87 billion), as the final deal went further on both trade liberalisation and service sector commitments than previously expected.

The deal will remove 93 per cent of GCC tariffs on British goods, equivalent to the removal of £580 million (AED 2.85 billion) worth of tariffs by the deal's tenth year, with two-thirds of the tariffs being removed as soon as the deal comes into force.

The government added that autos, aerospace, electronics and food and drink would be among the sectors to benefit, with cereals, cheddar cheese, chocolate and butter all becoming tariff-free.

In return, Britain has lowered tariffs to the GCC, though the countries' main exports to Britain, oil and gas, are already tariff-free.

On services, Britain locked in current access to the GCC so businesses could expand without facing new barriers, while Gulf countries can also grow their own service sectors through the deal.

The deal doesn't change or weaken British environmental or data protection standards, and also doesn't contain any language around human rights, the UK government said.

"At a time of increased instability, today's announcement sends a clear signal of confidence - giving UK exporters the certainty they need to plan ahead, Britain's Trade Minister Peter Kyle said.

"I’m proud that the UK is the first G7 country to secure a modern and ambitious trade deal with the GCC – an important and growing set of markets," he added.