Donald Trump Hints At 'Very Big' Trade Deal With India

Donald Trump on Friday hinted at a “very big" deal with India while he spoke at the Big Beautiful Bill event. Soon after signing a trade deal with China, the US President said his country is having some great deals.

“We are having some great deals. We have one coming up, maybe with India. A very big one. Where we’re going to open up India, in the China deal, we are starting to open up China," he said.

Meanwhile, an Indian team, headed by chief negotiator Rajesh Agarwal, also the special secretary in the Department of Commerce, arrived in Washington for the next round of trade talks with their US counterparts, a news agency quoted an official as saying. It was also learnt that both countries are trying to finalise the pact before July 9. The high tariffs, announced by the US on April 2, were suspended by the Trump administration till July 9.

On April 2, the US imposed an additional 26 percent reciprocal tariff on Indian goods but suspended it for 90 days. However, the 10 percent baseline tariff imposed by America remains in place. India is seeking full exemption from the additional 26 percent tariff.

The US wants duty concessions on certain industrial goods, automobiles – especially electric vehicles, wines, petrochemical products, dairy, and agricultural items like apples, tree nuts, and genetically modified crops.

India is seeking duty concessions for labour-intensive sectors like textiles, gems and jewellery, leather goods, garments, plastics, chemicals, shrimp, oil seeds, grapes, and bananas in the proposed trade pact.

When asked if the July 9 deadline would not be extended, a source said that the tariffs would come to the April 2 level (26 percent in the case of India).

The two countries are looking to conclude talks for the first tranche of the proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA) by fall (September-October) this year. The pact is aimed at more than doubling bilateral trade to USD 500 billion by 2030 from the current USD 191 billion. Before the first tranche, they are trying for an interim trade pact.

On June 10, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said that India and the US were in the process of negotiating a fair and equitable trade agreement that will benefit both economies. “We are negotiating to make a nice, fair, equitable, and balanced agreement to promote business," Goyal had said.