The UK now has a trade surplus with Japan thanks to services

The first post Brexit trade deal the UK made was with Japan. It was signed on 23rd October 2020 and came into effect in 2021. It eliminated many of the tariffs that had applied to British goods when Britain was part of the EU. Crucially, the deal had a financial services and digital services component.

Here is the breakdown in trade from the Office of National Statistics:

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On the goods side, the UK exported £7.5 billion of goods to Japan and imported £8.5 billion of goods from Japan, giving Britain a trade deficit in goods of £1 billion.

On the services side, the UK exported £8.6 billion of services to Japan and imported £6.4 billion of services from Japan, giving Britain a trade surplus in services of £2.2 billion.

Thus the UK had a total trade surplus of £1.2 billion with Japan in the four quarters to the end of Q1 2025.

Here are the top five goods traded:

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Here are the top five services:

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"Other business services" include: research and development, professional and management
consulting services, technical services and trade related services.

Here are the regions trading the most with Japan:

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It's a surprise how well trade with Japan has developed post Brexit, and that's down to the trade deal having a services and digital chapter.