WASHINGTON, March 22 (AFP) - The United States on Tuesday announced an agreement with Britain to end tariffs on steel and aluminium imports imposed by former president Donald Trump.

"By allowing for a flow of duty-free steel and aluminium from the UK, we further ease the gap between supply and demand for these products in the United States," Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said in a statement.

"And by removing the UK's retaliatory tariffs, we reopen the British market to beloved American products."

The deal was the latest in a series of efforts by President Joe Biden to settle trade spats with US allies, some of which were long-running and others started under the Trump administration.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson cheered the announcement of the deal "with our American friends."

"This is fantastic news and a very welcome boost to our steel and aluminium industries," he said on Twitter.

Washington and London in January announced the start of negotiations to end the dispute, which began in 2018 when Trump imposed levies of 25 per cent on steel and 10 per cent on aluminium imports from Britain and other nations to protect US industry.

US companies for years have struggled to compete with the glut of supply coming out of China, but Trump penalised close trade partners citing national security concerns, which worsened relations with major US allies.

The Biden administration in October reached a deal to end the tariffs on the European Union, and in early February did the same with Japan.