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The UK signed a trade agreement with Switzerland on Monday to replace the existing EU treaties. Trade between the United Kingdom and Switzerland is about £ 32 billion a year, and 15,000 British exporters trade with that country. But International Trade Minister Liam Fox admitted he could not replace all treaties in time before Brexit.
With our correspondent in London, Marina Daras
This trade agreement with Switzerland is considered the most important agreement since the announcement of Brexit.
The agreement will avoid, for example, adding about 8 million euros of customs duties to the price of cars exported from the United Kingdom to Switzerland, while British consumers will benefit from cheaper prices for Swiss products, " such as clocks, watches and pharmaceuticals ".
This is good news for the government, which is struggling to renegotiate the forty or so European treaties it currently enjoys. These agreements represent almost 12% of total UK trade and cover 71 countries. But only four, including Switzerland, have agreed to sign a new business continuity agreement with the UK.
Liam Fox announced Monday that he would have to prioritize the most successful agreements, because all could not be finalized in time. But just 45 days before Brexit, the UK government has still not made any progress in negotiating agreements with its biggest trading partners such as Japan, South Korea and Canada, which could be very costly in the event exit from the EU without a negotiated agreement.