Treasury Secretary Mnuchin expects US-UK trade deal ‘this year’

US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Thursday said a post-Brexit trade deal between the United States and Britain was a top priority and he expected such an agreement by the end of the year.

The top US economic official made his comments before heading to London to lay out ways the two countries could reach a quick accord after the UK leaves the EU on January 31, AFP reports.

Responding to Mnuchin’s remarks, the spokesman for British Prime Minister Boris Johnson declined to offer a timetable. Both sides “want to agree an ambitious free trade agreement as quickly as possible,” the spokesman said.

“Once we have left the EU in just over a week’s time we’ll be free to start having discussions with countries around the world including the US,” he added.