India-US trade deal: As US President Donald Trump’s fresh reciprocal tariff deadline of August 1, 2025 nears, a senior delegation from India’s Commerce and Industry Ministry has landed in Washington DC. The team will look to finalize an interim trade deal between India and the US.India and the United States aim to resolve disagreements in key sectors, particularly agriculture and automobiles, whilst working towards a mutually beneficial trade agreement.
The US administration under Trump has extended the deadline for implementing additional tariffs on various nations, including India, until August 1, providing extra time for negotiations beyond the initial July 9 cut-off date.Donald Trump has been on a tariff letter spending spree since last week, and has threatened high tariffs on over 20 countries. Notably, India has not received any such letter till now and Trump said last week that the US was nearing a trade deal with India.Also Read | India-US trade deal: Will Donald Trump go for less than 20% tariff rate for India? Top 10 developments to track
India-US Trade Deal Talks
- According to an ANI report, discussions on the mini or interim
bilateral trade agreement (BTA) between India and the US are expected to start Monday morning (US time) and will span across four days. - The Chief Negotiator and Special Secretary of the Commerce Ministry, Rajesh Aggarwal, is scheduled to participate in the talks from Wednesday, the report said.
- The early arrival of the preliminary team before the chief negotiator indicates a systematic approach, where initial talks will likely address agenda setting and procedural aspects, followed by detailed negotiations with senior officials.
- A few days ago, a Bloomberg report quoting sources said that the US is working on a trade deal with India, in which America will impose a tariff rate of less than 20%. This would be lower than the 26% tariff rate announced by Trump on April 2.
India and the US have expressed interest in expanding their trade relationships and bolstering their economic collaboration through diversified partnerships.India maintains a significant trade relationship with the United States, which stands as one of its principal trading partners. American companies increasingly view India as a crucial market for their international expansion plans.Also Read | India-US trade deal: Opening India’s dairy sector to America could cause huge losses; ‘Rs 1.03 lakh crore annually…’An official statement last week confirmed that Indian negotiators would visit the United States to advance the ongoing trade discussions.Both nations have set a target to enhance their bilateral trade volume to $500 billion by 2030, with plans to establish a formal Bilateral Trade Agreement.Officials from India’s Department of Commerce have engaged in multiple discussions with their counterparts from the Office of the US Trade Representative to finalise a comprehensive trade agreement.
