Britain has completed its economic break from the European Union. The formal move came at 11 p.m. Thursday in London.
It ended a 48-year partnership with the trading bloc and started a new, more distant relationship between Britain and its continental neighbors. The single market and customs union allows people, goods and services to flow freely across more than two dozen countries.
A different trade deal took effect, bringing new restrictions and red tape. But to Brexit supporters, the arrangement reclaimed national independence from the Brussels-based bloc. Britain left the EU politically almost a year ago but remained part of its economic structures until the end of 2020.
