UK-EU Trade Sees Big Post-Brexit Drop
Trade between the United Kingdom and the European Union dropped substantially in the first month following the U.K.'s exit from the EU. According to trade data from the U.K.'s Office for National Statistics, U.K. exports to the EU fell by more than 40% in the first month of 2021 and imports from the EU to the U.K. fell by nearly 29%. The largest drop in imports to the U.K. was in machinery and transport equipment, particularly in the import of cars and medicinal and pharmaceutical products. January's fall in trade is the largest single-month drop in goods imports and exports since tracking began in January 1997, according to the trade data.
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The U.K. blamed pre-Brexit stockpiling of goods, COVID-19-related lockdowns and businesses adjusting to the new system. David Frost, the U.K.'s minister in charge of managing relations with the EU, urged caution when interpreting the trade statistics. “These effects are starting to unwind,” Frost tweeted. “The latest information indicates that overall freight volumes between the UK and the EU have been back to their normal levels for over a month now, ie since the start of February.”