Kenya is seeking to strike a new trade deal with the US just weeks before the expiry of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) in September. The renewed push for a trade deal also comes days after a 10 percent tariff imposed on Nairobi’s exports to Washington took effect on August 1.Trade Cabinet Secretary Lee Kinyanjui said on Thursday that he had emphasised Kenya’s strong commitment to securing a mutually beneficial trade agreement during a meeting with the US Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer. Mr Kinyanjui’s and Mr Greer’s meeting had been convened as a follow-up to earlier talks that the latter held with Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi in May 2025. Mr Kinyanjui said that the meeting concluded with a commitment from both parties to initiate the process of a reciprocal trade agreement. He did not divulge details on how the pact would be structured. “Kenya is deeply interested in the commencement of formal negotiations with the US government. A reciprocal trade agreement is crucial for securing long-term access to the US market for Kenyan products and will provide the stability needed to unlock new investments,” he said.“A number of US firms have already expressed strong interest in establishing or expanding their operations in Kenya, and this framework will be a key enabler for that growth,” he added.A reciprocal trade pact refers to a trade policy where countries agree to reduce trade barriers, such as tariffs and quotas, on each other’s goods and services in an effort to make it easier and cheaper to trade. On April 2 this year, US President Donald Trump invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose a baseline tariff on all US trading partners in a bid to address what he termed as ‘absence of reciprocity in our bilateral trade relationships’. Washington, however, paused enforcement of the tariffs initially for 90 days from April 10, which lapsed in July before being extended to August 1. The US has since inked tariff deals with most of its key trade partners, including the 27-member European Union, the UK, and Japan.Kenya is among the countries that were slapped with the lowest tax of 10 percent in the protectionist tariff changes, which largely targeted countries that run a goods trade surplus with the world’s largest economy.Mr Kinyanjui had earlier intimated that Kenya was keen on pursuing a deal with Washington that would see a return to ‘normalcy’ in tariffs on exports to the US. Kenya largely exports textiles and macadamia nuts to the US at zero tariff and no restrictions on quantities under the under the Agoa policy. President Trump’s insistence on reciprocal tariff policies in trade negotiations has raised anxiety among beneficiaries of the tax- and quota-free Agoa over its renewal upon expiry at the end of next month. (ICE NAIROBI)

Fonte notizia: Business Daily