Wilbur Ross, the US commerce secretary, says it makes sense to restart talks with the European Union

The Trump administration has given its strongest signal yet that it will restart free-trade talks with the European Union, with the US commerce secretary saying that such a move “makes sense”.

Wilbur Ross said it was “no mistake” that America had withdrawn from the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal but not the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership talks with the EU.

The TTIP was declared dead when Donald Trump was elected president in November. He had attacked multilateral trade agreements during his campaign, saying that bilateral deals would work better for America. The president took the United States out of the TPP during his first week in office.

Mr Ross’s comments are further evidence that America is prioritising a free trade agreement with the EU above a