The second half of the year begins with two major customs changes, as the EU scraps its ‘de minimis’ exemption for low value imports and steel import quotas were lowered in both the UK and EU.
The front runner to become prime minister, Andy Burnham, made his first leadership pitch, focusing on devolution and raising living standards, while the Chartered Institute of Export & International Trade attended one of the country's largest logistics trade shows.
The big picture: Burnham began the week setting out his agenda for government.
The former Greater Manchester mayor, and only declared contender for PM, made his first speech outlining his political agenda, should he become leader, on Monday (29 June).
He emphasised he wanted to devolve power to the UK’s regions, as well as Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Burnham also said there was a need to “streamline government” and that he would create a “No 10 North”, which would sit at the heart of a “rewired Britain”.
He also highlighted improving living standards and job prospects for young people as key priorities, and reiterated a previous pledge to ensure all his plans will not breach current chancellor Rachel Reeves’ fiscal rules.
Reacting to the speech, leader of the opposition Kemi Badenoch and senior Scottish politicians dismissed the speech as containing “nothing of substance” and “empty promises”.
Good week/bad week: Good news for US-EU goods trade despite tariffs, as a study published this week suggested bilateral trade had remained resilient.
The German Economic Institute’s report found that services trade reached €865bn, while goods trade reached €875bn. EU goods exports to the US also rose 7.7% to €580bn.
However, the report also notes that export increased were unevenly distributed among member states. Ireland’s exports surged by over 52% as a result of tariff-exempt pharmaceutical and chemical products, and the Czech Republic, Italy, Denmark and Finland also recorded growth, but other states reported declines.
European manufacturing, particularly car-making, also suffered, EU car and car part exports to the US fell 20.4% in 2025.
A challenging week for UK steel producers and importers, as tariff-free quotas on both sides of the Channel were revised down on Wednesday.
Brussels announced the day before that it would lower quota volumes for UK imports by a quarter, with out-of-quota goods attracting a 50% duty. Meanwhile the UK reduced its own import steel quotas by 51% and upped its tariffs to 50%.
The UK was among countries able to secure a smaller quota reduction as a result of its free trade agreement with the EU. Other nations that achieved this include Turkey, India, Korea, Indonesia, Egypt, Brazil, Switzerland, North Macedonia, South Africa, Argentina, Ukraine and Singapore, according to Politico reporting.
The Chartered Institute’s technical director Anna Doherty also warned its not just UK steel producers that need to be aware of the changes – UK manufacturers importing steel parts should also evaluate the impact on their supply chains.
“Traders should be aware of these changes and take action, otherwise they could start paying higher tariff rates for their imports."
How’s stat? £15bn. That’s how much the Defence Investment Plan will increase spending by.
The plan was announced by outgoing PM Sir Keir Starmer, new defence secretary Dan Jarvis and current chancellor Reeves.
The plan offers an additional £1bn of funding to the one over which former defence secretary John Healey resigned.
Quote of the week: “This is a step in the right direction, as while the standard is voluntary and acts as a best-in-class benchmark, the registration will be mandatory, administered by HMRC and necessary for any actor lodging declarations.”
Doherty highlighting the importance of the upcoming requirement that customs intermediaries formally register with HMRC, announced as part of last week’s 2026 HMRC Tax Update.
Full analysis from our customs, digitalisation and government experts was published earlier this week, and members can read that here.
The week in customs: In customs, the start of the month also marked a significant change in the EU’s ‘de minimis’ regime.
From 1 July, the EU’s €150 ‘de minimis’ threshold below which goods imported into the bloc don’t attract customs fees was abolished. Instead of applying standard custom charges to these goods, a flat €3 fee will apply to every low-value item imported. Orders containing multiple items will be subject to multiple €3 charges.
These changes follow the US’ removal of its exemption last year, and comes ahead of the UK’s plan to scrap its own de minimis, which was recently brought forward to October 2028 from March 2029.
Doherty provided a detailed explanation of the changes, as well as the points businesses should be considering in this video.
What else we covered: The Chartered Institute attended Multimodal 2026 this week – one of the UK’s leading logistics conferences.
We hosted panel sessions exploring topics from standards for customs intermediaries, how supply chains can adapt to the new geopolitical world order, UK border innovation and customs regulatory changes in the UK and EU. You can glean our team’s insights from that event here.
There were several updates for food and drink exporters, as Chartered Institute technical manager and SPS expert Joseph Goldsworthy outlined upcoming regulatory changes at the sector’s latest Special Interest Group and covered opportunities for food and drink exporters arising from recent UK trade deals.
True facts: A huge weekend for the US… Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are finally tying the knot after much speculation as to the date.
That date may have some significance to the wider nation, as the US will be celebrating its 250th anniversary of independence from the UK.
To mark the occasion, the traditional Washington firework display will be extended to a full 40 minutes, and feature 860,000 fireworks, rather than the typical 10,000.
