Today, Global Trade Today reports that the government has permanently paused the Single Trade Window (STW) border digitalisation project, as well as trade minister Sir Chris Bryant’s lobbying in France on the ‘Made in Europe’ plan and a British bank meeting on an alternative to the Visa/Mastercard payment duopoly.
Single Trade Window shelved?
The STW has been shelved, according to the FT.
The digital border service would have allowed traders to lodge documents at a single point, in order to fulfil customs and regulatory requirements.
In Freedom of Information requests seen by the FT, no new money has been spent on STW since January, no HMRC staff are assigned to the project and the contract for delivery with IBM and Deloitte “has been closed”.
The previous Conservative government initially trailed that it intended to develop such a system for the UK when releasing its ‘2025 Border Strategy’ in 2020.
As reported previously by Global Trade Today, the successor Labour government announced in a written statement that the delivery of STW had been paused in 2025 and 2026.
A government spokesman told the FT that the government “remain committed to delivering a single trade window, recognising its potential benefits to trade.”
Ilona Kawka, Imports Advisory Practice lead at the Chartered Institute of Export & International Trade, said: “Successful implementation of a single trade window can bring many benefits to the trading community, as well as to the governments, and its adoption is one of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement provisions.
“It is important that the creation of a centralised system is developed with all the border’s key stakeholders in mind, to facilitate their operations, improve reporting and oversight, enable interoperability and unlock end-to-end supply chain digitalisation through global data standards.”
Made in Europe
Draft legislation from the European Commission (EC) will force electric vehicle (EV) producers that receive state support to make at least 70% of their car components in the EU, under its proposed ‘Made in Europe’ plan.
At least 25% of products made from aluminium and 30% of plastics used in construction products must be manufactured in the EU in order to access public contracts and subsidies, under the proposals. The full legislation – the Industrial Accelerator Act – will be published 25 February.
Politico reports that Sir Chris Bryant is heading to France next month, as the Labour government battles to make sure that the UK is not damaged by the new rules on procurement and European supply chains.
Trade secretary Peter Kyle will also be heading to France separately as part of the lobbying push.
As reported previously, by Global Trade Today, European capitals are pushing the ‘Made in Europe’ plan to protect strategic sectors and limit Chinese influence in the European economy.
Euro-area expansion
European financial heads are pushing to expand the role of the Euro, in direct response to geopolitical uncertainty and US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
“In light of recent geopolitical events in our current geopolitical context, there are risks that the international financial and monetary system is being used as a political tool,” said Greek Finance Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis, according to Bloomberg.
“It is thus existential for us to safeguard the international role of the euro as it is quite pertinent for the EU’s monetary sovereignty.”
Bloomberg also cited documents published by the EC that called for a reinforcement of ‘Euro diplomacy’, with reassurances promised to countries around the world about access to the currency.
Sweden, which currently uses its domestic Krona, is said to be considering a move to the Euro.
In a similar vein, UK bank chiefs are holding a meeting this Thursday (19 February) on establishing a national alternative to Visa and Mastercard, over concerns that Trump could shut off the US payment systems and damage the UK economy.
According to a March 2025 report from the UK’s Payment Systems Regulator, around 95% of UK card transactions are made using payment systems owned by Mastercard and Visa.
Shipping merger
Hapag-Lloyd has signed a merger agreement with ZIM Integrated Shipping Services. According to a press release, this would create a standing capacity of more than 3m twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) across 400 vessels. The deal is still subject to approval from regulators and shareholders, but would see Hapag-Lloyd acquire the tenth largest container shipping line.
Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd, said:
“Customers will benefit from a significantly strengthened network on the Transpacific, Intra Asia, Atlantic, Latin America and East Mediterranean.”
Lars Jensen, CEO of Vespucci Maritime, called the deal “a surprise development”, but added that it could prove to be useful to the company as the market is “heading towards a cyclical downturn”.
The news comes as Drewery reports a 122% jump in blank sailings by carriers, as the shipping market experiences a downturn in demand. This is expected to change after the Chinese New Year period, when many Asian factories close.
However, the Freightos Baltic Index experienced falls across most major routes, with the Asia-US West Coast falling by 21% in the first full week of February.
Other news
- The government has launched a consultation on the UK Financial Sanctions Regulation
- The UK has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with California governor Gavin Newsome, deepening ties on clean energy
- Small businesses are facing pressures comparable to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the Business and Trade Committee, with billions owed to SMEs from suppliers and a continuing decline in the British high street
Yesterday in trade
- The Food and Drink Federation’s CEO, Karen Betts, warned that UK firms would struggle to be ready for customs changes introduced if an EU veterinary agreement was agreed
- The UK government is considering hiking defence spending
- The All-Parliamentary Party Group for International Trade & Investment is looking into recently published government strategies and whether SMEs are accessing the benefits
