Barack Obama has said a trade deal between the UK and US would be at the "back of the queue" if the UK left the European Union.
The President said a free trade arrangement would not happen "any time soon" in the event of Brexit.
Speaking alongside Prime Minister David Cameron at the Foreign Office, he said: "I think it's fair to say that maybe some point down the line there might be a UK-US trade agreement.
"But it's not going to happen any time soon because our focus is in negotiating with a big bloc, the European Union, to get a trade agreement done.
"The UK is going to be in the back of the queue."
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Trying to do "piecemeal trade agreements" was "hugely inefficient", the President said.
He added, however, that the referendum was a decision for the British people and his comments were "not a threat" or an attempt to "fix any votes".
He was speaking after his comments in the Daily Telegraph urging the UK to stay in the Union triggered a furious row.
The remarks enraged many Tory eurosceptics, but delighted pro-EU campaigners.
President Obama again made no bones about his views as he faced reporters at the Foreign Office.
He said the matter was of of "deep interest" to the US and that the UK was at its best when helping lead Europe.
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"It leverages UK power to be part of the European Union. I don't believe the EU moderates British influence in the world, it magnifies it," said President Obama.
David Cameron told reporters "it surely makes sense to listen to what our friends think, to listen to their opinion".
He also pointed to the UK's "absolutely leading part" in current negotiations between the EU and the US on setting up the "biggest trade deal in the whole world".
Writing in The Telegraph on Friday, the President said the sacrifice of his country's soldiers in Europe during the Second World War amplified America's stake in the debate.
He wrote: "Our special relationship was forged as we spilled blood together on the battlefield."
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But his intervention ignited fury among Leave campaigners, including Mayor of London Boris Johnson, who accused the President of "hypocrisy".
Mr Johnson said: "It is a fact that America guards its sovereignty with such hysterical jealousy...
"It is paradoxical, inconsistent and incoherent that we are being urged every week to send £350m of our money to Brussels.
"What you have is a situation where the Government is ringing round every other friendly government saying 'we are in a bit of a spot, can you say something positive about the EU?'"
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