International maritime law specialist Hill Dickinson is at the forefront of new trade talks between the UK and USA in New York this week.
A high-level maritime trade delegation is being led by Julian Clark, Global Head of Shipping at Hill Dickinson, accompanied by Secretary of State for the Department of International Trade, Dr Liam Fox, as well as maritime sector business leaders. Discussions will take place aboard HMS Queen Elizabeth, which is currently in the United States for tests with the US F-35 fighter jet.
The British maritime leaders will meet with an American delegation at the inaugural ‘Maritime Nations Forum’ between the UK and US. The US delegation features major names from the New York maritime scene – lawyers, bankers, shipbrokers, insurers, technologists – and leaders from the wider United States.
Looking forward to “greater collaboration and exchange,” Mr Clark said: “Hill Dickinson is proud to take a leading role in these discussions at such a key moment in our nations trading history, as the UK maritime sector strengthens its transatlantic relationship.”
The meetings take place at a pivotal time in the negotiations on the UK’s departure from the EU, with the UK’s Department for International Trade consulting on a new free trade agreement with the US. The US administration has formally confirmed it intends to pursue a trade deal with the UK “as soon as it is ready” after leaving the EU.
As a single country the US is the largest export market for the UK, while as a supplier of goods and services to the UK, the US comes in second. The UK is also an important trade partner to the US, ranking second behind Canada and Mexico for both imports and exports.For Britain and the US is the largest single source of foreign direct investment (FDI), and while the US is also the largest destination for FDI by British firms.