U.S. President Donald Trump's preliminary trade agreement with the United Kingdom sent a signal to countries around the world — including Canada — about the goals of his campaign to upend global trade with tariffs. While the agreement announced Thursday has not been finalized and many details remain unclear, it suggests the president is willing to lower some tariffs but not to drop duties completely. "The final details are being written up," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. Trump launched his trade war on the world in April with "reciprocal" tariffs, only to walk back the most devastating duties a few hours later. Trump said the 90-day pause would give countries time to negotiate a deal while he kept in place a 10 per cent universal tariff. Trump also imposed a 145 per cent tariff on imports from China, as well as 25 per cent duties on steel, aluminum and automobiles. The announcement Thursday was a critical one for the Trump administration as it faces mounting pressure from Americans concerned about rising prices and markets in turmoil. Trump said the deal will boost American ethanol and beef exports to the United Kingdom. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the baseline 10 per cent tariffs on most U.K. imports to the United States will stay in place. U.K officials said in a separate press conference that duties on steel and aluminum will be lifted, while tariffs on automobiles will drop to 10 per cent for a quota of 100,000 vehicles. Trump's trade adviser Peter Navarro told reporters at the White House that the United Kingdom's digital services tax is "still in negotiations." The Trump administration has taken aim at Canada's own digital services tax, which it says amounts to "extraterritorial" taxation of American firms. Experts on Canada-U.S. relations said the U.K. deal could offer hints about how Trump's administration might approach trade talks with Canada. "It shows that the Trump administration is amenable to negotiation," said Fen Osler Hampson, an international affairs professor at Carleton University and co-chair of a group of experts on Canada-U.S. relations. Canada was not included in Trump's "reciprocal" tariff regime and is not subject to the 90-day race to make a deal. The president hit Canada with economywide tariffs in March, which Trump linked to the flow of fentanyl across the U.S.-Canada border. A few days later, Trump partially rescinded the duties for imports compliant under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico-Agreement on trade, called CUSMA. Canada is also being hit with tariffs on steel, aluminum and automobiles — with a partial carveout for American-made parts of vehicles. Have an opinion? Send it to [email protected]