UK agrees to join Pacific trade pact in post-Brexit deal

LONDON (AP) — The U.K. has agreed to join an Asia-Pacific trade pact that includes Japan, Mexico and Australia — the biggest new trade deal Britain has struck since leaving the European Union three years ago. 

The British government said Friday that it had clinched an agreement after almost two years of negotiations to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, or CPTPP. 

The government said membership would reduce tariffs on British dairy products and other goods and remove red tape for services, boosting the U.K. economy by 1.8 billion pounds ($2.2 billion) “in the long run.” 

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the deal “demonstrates the real economic benefits of our post-Brexit freedoms.”